Perfectly Practical #84- Give to Your Family

Last week we kicked off the 30 Day Giving Challenge with ways to give to your church.  This week, I would like to focus on giving to your family.  (I almost wrote focus on the family but thought there might be a copyright issue.)  ;)

I have written previously about how important it is to connect with the past.  Family history is such a wonderful gift to give your children/grandchildren.  But what else can you give your family?

Time - Time to play games, to listen to workday stories about I-Beams and the latest construction standards, to watch them do their latest mime piece entitled "Man on a Treadmill", just time - this is the most important gift to give.

Knowledge - No, not unsolicited advice, but true knowledge of how things work - life experience.  Theories are great but practical applications are better.  Show your son how to do laundry, show your daughter how to change a tire, show your husband how to change the toilet paper roll, etc.  This also ties into sharing your gifts or skills with your family.  Recipes fall under this category as well.

Support - Your family "sees your rear" so to speak.  They see the worst you that no one else sees and love you anyway (and vice versa).  Sometimes even when you or they are "showing your rear" all that is needed is support; not advice, not a solution, just a pillar on which to lean.

How to Be Treated or to Treat Others - If you have read here much at all, you know that Engineer and I feel very passionately about having a strong marriage for Diva's sake.  We want to be good examples to her.  The day she said that she wanted to marry someone just like Daddy, she gave the highest compliment she could possibly give.  It's not just about a marriage relationship though.  We want her to see us respect our elders, help those in need, and show kindness to strangers.  On the flip side, when we are wronged we want her to see us handle it with grace.  I'm not saying that always happens, but we do try. 

Financial Footing - Engineer and I feel like besides a strong marriage, the best thing we can do for Diva is to get her on the right path for financial stability.  I'm not talking about trust funds here; I am talking about getting her in a mindset for being a good steward with her resources so that she will have financial freedom all of her life.   Being rich won't make her happy but being in bondage will make her unhappy.  If we get to guide her to make the choice of which path to walk down, we want our child to be happy.   

All of these aspects of giving to your family line up to give them the best possible chance at life and the best possible legacy for your family.

I have a hard time with this one.   My family often gets the leftovers of me after I have done for everyone else.  It seems I have things a little backwards.  My family should get the freshest me, the most willing me, the best me; but, instead they get the tired me, the most reluctant me, the worst me.  My personal challenge for this week will be to give my family me - cheerfully.

This is the second in the series of 30 Day Giving Challenges.  You can read the first part on giving to your church here.

This is part of We Are That Family's Works for Me Wednesday and the 30 Day Giving Challenge.