Do Hard Things!!!!!

My dear, sweet niece, Abigail (almost 15) was reading the book Do Hard Things: A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations.

She was really inspired by the book. It was written by Alex and Brett Harris, the younger brothers of Joshua Harris who wrote I Kissed Dating Goodbye. In the book, they talk about how society has such low expectations for teenagers and that if a teenager isn't doing "bad" things such as drinking, etc. then they are considered "good kids". They challenge teenagers to take risks, set higher goals for themselves, take on challenges, get out of their comfort zones, etc.

It is honestly a good book for anyone to read, not just teenagers. I have been inspired to "do hard things" too! (Of course my husband reminded me that I'm already doing a hard thing by homeschooling my children, which is true. :o)) But I do want to set the bar a little higher for myself and encourage my children to work harder at what they do, such as their school work, piano, chores.

One of the verses mentioned in the book is Proverbs 24:16 "For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again." I love that! I had a flop the other night while trying to make something called "dinner in a loaf". I was so excited about trying something new. Unfortunately I forgot to add the yeast to the bread dough, so it didn't rise. I'm blaming it on my sister, Kellie, because I was talking to her on the phone at the time. :o) But because of Proverbs 24:16, I didn't get too discouraged. I will attempt "dinner in a loaf" again and hopefully won't forget the yeast! :o)

I'm not finished with the book yet, but it has given me a new perspective. I have begun doing crunches every day, which is NOT something I enjoy but definitely need to do. I am also trying to make more of an effort to teach more Spanish to my children. Doing hard things will be a commonly used phrase during school times when they are struggling with a new concept. It has already helped! I also use this: "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time." They're probably tired of that one!

I included 2 pictures of the first day of school, which was a couple of weeks ago. The easle behind Clayton has been one of the best purchases I have ever made. We use it all the time. One side is a dry erase board and the other side is a chalk board. .........well, I better go do some hard things........like laundry!