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nissag
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| Posted: July 17 2007 at 7:06pm | IP Logged
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After some fairly trying weeks that caused me to pause, I decided to go back and review my purpose as a teacher and a mother. In doing so, I rediscovered our family mission statement. I wrote a post at my homeschooling blog about how we went about formulating our mission statement and hope that it will be helpful to anyone who is feeling a bit lost.
I hope you'll come by and share your thoughts and the results of your mission statement projects, should you feel moved to create one for your family.
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Nissa
Deacon's wife, mother of eleven, farmer, teacher, creator, cook.
At Home With the Gadbois Family
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Cay Gibson
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| Posted: July 17 2007 at 7:10pm | IP Logged
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This is something I have thought about and thought about and thought about, Nissa. Last summer at the local hs conference I even went to a talk concerning making family mission statements.
I've simply never sat down with dh and written one up.
I'm going now to read your post. Perhaps it will give me the motivation and steps I need to get it done.
I believe there is real value in a mission statement. Thank you, dear.
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Cay Gibson
"There are 49 states, then there is Louisiana." ~ Chef Emeril
wife to Mark '86
mom to 5
Cajun Cottage Under the Oaks
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Becky Parker
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| Posted: July 18 2007 at 5:56am | IP Logged
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I really like your blog Nissa! Several (like 10) years ago I was feeling "tossed about by the waves". It seemed like I was too busy, mostly because I was saying yes to things that really weren't that important and then not having time for the things that were. I read a book in which the main focus, or at least the main thing I learned, was about a personal mission statement. So I spent some time to write one and it has made a huge difference!
Now I also see the need for a family mission statement. I would really like to get my husband on board with me, as I think this is something we should all do together. It's hard though. It's hard to find the time and energy necessary to sit down as a family and do this. Any suggestions here? I think we all need motivation...well, I guess I am motivated, I just don't think anyone else is around here. I'd love to hear how you got your family on board to do this with you.
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Becky
Wife to Wes, Mom to 6 wonderful kids on Earth and 4 in Heaven!
Academy Of The Good Shepherd
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nissag
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| Posted: July 18 2007 at 6:31am | IP Logged
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Thanks so much Becky. I hope I'll be spending a little more time writing at the RA blog this year.
I have a couple of suggestions for making the time, and making it attractive. The first is borrowed from the Mormon friends we lived next door to in the military. They have something every week called "Family Home Evening". It's a committment to stay home and spend time with the family. No individual pursuits. We chose Fridays (which has proven to be quite a challenge). On Fridays, we say a family rosary and have our family meeting if one is necessary. We enjoy a special dinner - fish fry or homemade pizzas. You might want to try this at your house. Pick a day, any day to do this. Do it only once a month to start, if that will work better. In our case, making it an immediate weekly practice was essential to establishing a rhythm, but each family is different. I've found that food is a great way to ease the family into something that I think might be daunting.
What we did to make the mission statement process interesting was to do a "break the ice" exercise. We already know who we are - we didn't need introductions - so we took it one step further: *Who* are we? Each of us was given a sheet of paper that read across the top, "I am..." Number 1 was provided for them.
1. a child of God
Then we had each member of the family list what they thought their own strengths were. After that, we exchanged papers and had each family member write three things that were special about that person. We kept passing the papers until everyone had their own back. It worked a bit like a game and I was a little nervous about the outcome. We have some bna fide goofballs in the bunch. I was very moved by the beautiful things written. Set ground rules if you think this might go down a path you don't want. We all were able to see how special we are to the other members of our family.
In this atmosphere, it is very easy to segue into the family mission exercise. Have Papa take the notes while the kids take turns suggesting items from each section of the exercise on the blog.
We took it a couple of steps further and came up with a family motto and made our own family crest. It was great fun and made a great memory. I think it was very valuable to each of us.
I think I'm going to put this on the blog, too.
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Nissa
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Becky Parker
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| Posted: July 19 2007 at 7:16am | IP Logged
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Thanks for these ideas Nissa! I'm hoping to get this in the works before we start school up again. I do think that it will be a great way to give our family life some sort of "rudder", if that makes any sense. I know my personal mission statement has been a huge help to me. I first read about it in a book by a Mormon author (you mentioned the Mormons above - this must be a big thing for them), then added to it when I read A Mother's Rule of Life.
I have a book on my shelf, which I bought a while ago and never read. It is called The Mission of the Catholic Family by Rick Sarkisian. I think I'll pull it out and see if there are any pearls of wisdom there too.
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Becky
Wife to Wes, Mom to 6 wonderful kids on Earth and 4 in Heaven!
Academy Of The Good Shepherd
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Theresa H
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| Posted: July 19 2007 at 5:49pm | IP Logged
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Nissa,
Thanks for starting this thread! We made a family mission statement about 4 years ago. It was looked at maybe twice and then got put aside. I need to revive it and post it. Family mission statements get "everyone on the same page".
We did make up our family "motto" (acronym) this summer when we were having behavior problems (the kids gave us their input). WFG = Work for Good, Work for Grace, Work for God. We decided to say WFG instead "nagging" especially when we're in public.
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Theresa from OK
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Maryan
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| Posted: July 19 2007 at 6:25pm | IP Logged
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Oh Nissa - thanks  My husband and I have been working on ours all summer. It's helpful to see other mission statements and the reasons behind the wording. 
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Maryan
Mom to 6 boys & 1 girl: JP('01), B ('03), M('05), L('06), Ph ('08), M ('10), James born 5/1/12
A Lee in the Woudes
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4Real Forums : Living Learning
Topic: On a Mission
