How do you parent during a pandemic? You work hard to protect the peace of your home!

For children, how they feel at home has a big impact on their emotional health. Children need at least one, nonjudgmental space in their life where they can share and be heard. Parents, grandparents, caregivers – we get to be this space for the kids in our life.

Most children will be unable to grasp the fullness of COVID19: the impact it may have on health care systems, the stock market, small businesses, or church giving – I mean, goodness, at this point we adults are struggling to grasp and understand our new reality. What children can grasp today (and most days) is: do I feel safe? Do I feel loved? Do I feel secure? We can help kids answer these questions with a resounding yes and here are some tips on how to do it:

Tip #1 Listen to your kids talk

Make eye contact with them – listen not just to hear their words, but to understand what they are saying. Listen to what they are trying to say but maybe don’t have the words yet to fully communicate. Then talk.

Tip #2 Let them feel

Give kids space to express how they truly feel. Validate that their feelings are real. Their feelings may not be true but they are nonetheless very real. Help them work through their feelings and as you do that, remind your children that ‘with God all things are possible’.

Tip #3 Don’t shame or judge your children

Remember we want to create safe places for our children. We want to protect the peace of their hearts. Our relationship as caregivers with our children has a direct impact on their relationship with God, the Father. Ask yourself as the parent, ‘if I was bringing this concern to God, how would he react?’ Throughout Scripture we see the character of God displayed by his loving kindness, his gentleness, his patience, his Father’s heart – his heart is never to shame or belittle. Take that same approach as you parent.

Tip #4 Share from your heart

We don’t want to burden our kids with our grown up issues or transfer our insecurities on to them. But it is important for them to see and hear how you process life and its ups and downs. Share your experiences with an emphasis on how God has helped you.

As you parent during this pandemic – protect the peace of your home. Limit what kids hear from the media. Be mindful of their hearts as you talk about what is happening in the world. Talk about the pandemic with God’s nearness in mind. Read the Bible together.

To help you out a little, my ten-year-old daughter and myself created this printable to help you study Psalm 91 with your children. Click here to download! 

And remember, we are in this together- and together we will rise as stronger, more compassionate people.

How do you keep your home environment peaceful? Share your thoughts and suggestions with us.

The post Parenting During a Pandemic: Protect the Peace of Your Home appeared first on Christianbook.com Blog.

We don’t know if you’re aware… but here at Christianbook, we love books. Like, we really love books. And, we’re pretty sure that you love books too.

So, fellow book lover, we’re certain you’ll agree, there’s absolutely nothing worse than losing your spot in your current read. Or having to dog-ear a book page. Ugh! To help you prevent either of these things happening to you in the future, we’ve created a series of quite lovely printable Christian bookmarks.

There are 20 bookmarks in total here – these feature Scripture, famous quotes from literary heroes, and motivational Christian phrases. Also, not forgetting our Spanish friends, we’ve also designed a series of bookmarks in español! We hope you’ll find a bookmark (or two) among these that you’ll love. Maybe you could even print some out to give to loved ones too!

Happy reading, friends!

[[ Click here to download these Bookmarks ]]

[[ Click here to download these Bookmarks ]]

The post Printable Christian Bookmarks appeared first on Christianbook.com Blog.

“For every minute spent in organizing, an hour is earned.” – Benjamin Franklin

At Christianbook, we understand homeschoolers have to balance many spinning plates. There are lessons to prep, grades to record, appointments to attend, meals to plan – and that’s just the start. Phew!

So, it comes as no surprise, that when it comes to your homeschool – organization is key! This is precisely why we created this handy Homeschool Organization Tool.

Featuring over 15 reproducible forms, this PDF planner download is designed to help you keep everything in one place. It also contains ten simple reminders we hope will serve as encouragement for you in your day-to-day homeschool life.

This download includes:

• A header page designed to print and use as the cover for a three-ring-binder
• 2020 & 2021 calendar-at-a-glance pages
• PDF planner pages for Monday-Friday, for use with any year/grade/subject
• Blank PDF homeschool planner pages designed so you can fill in each child, subject, assignments, and dates in the manner that best works for you
• Hourly schedule
• Attendance tracker
• Report card
• Reading log
• Field trip log form
• Curriculum shopping list form
• To-do list template with day headings
• Weekly organizer page for menus, projects, habit-tracking, and more
• Goals page with four different goal sections – for multiple children, individual weeks or months, or different categories
• Goals tracker
• Dot grid paper ideal for bullet-journaling
• Notepaper

Click here to download your 2020/21 Homeschool Planner today!

The post Free 2020 Homeschool Planner appeared first on Christianbook.com Blog.

Every investment made into the life of a child is important and never wasted. As you plant seeds during a child’s formative years, truly only eternity will show us the impact being made. You – mom, dad, grandma, grandpa, aunt, uncle, Kid’s pastor, VBS director, teacher, volunteer – you are coloring their world. You are helping to shape their perspective on God and his goodness. What a child believes to be true about God directly impacts every other area of their life.

Don’t grow weary in the journey – keep on keeping on with grit, determination, grace and love. Galatians 6:9 in The Passion Translation says this, “And don’t allow yourselves to be weary or disheartened in planting good seeds, for the season of reaping the wonderful harvest you’ve planted is coming!”

We’ve got a fun download for you this Valentine season – FREE Valentines that can be printed on cardstock! Ideas on how to use these Valentines:

1. Add a piece of candy and give one to each child the Sunday before Valentine’s Day.
2. Make these Valentines available to parents to take and distribute to their child’s school class, make it your gift to them!
3. Print a small label to stick on the back inviting recipients to come to church on a Sunday or an upcoming special event.

From all of us at Christianbook, Happy Valentine’s Day! What you do matters, you are doing a great job, and you bring God great joy!

[ CLICK TO DOWNLOAD ]

[ CLICK TO DOWNLOAD ]

The post Valentine’s Day Download: You Color Their World! appeared first on Christianbook.com Blog.

So, to help you keep on top of all those events and to-do lists, so you have more time to enjoy with loved ones, we’ve created these handy printables. This download also comes with a selection of gift tags ready to print out, cut out and tie to your Christmas gifts. It’s the perfect solution for all you out there who love to keep organized… or for anyone who needs a little help staying organized!

Included in this download is:

• A gift planner
• Christmas Wish List
• Shopping Planner
• To-Do List
• Christmas Card List
• Event List
• Party Planner
• Grocery List
• Recipe Cards
• Menu Planner
• December Calendar
• Weekly Planner
• 16 Printable Gift Tags

Click here to download your FREE Christmas Planner!

The post Free Christmas Planner + 16 Gift Tags! appeared first on Christianbook.com Blog.

So, in case you are in need of a fall refresh, we’ve created some Christian wallpapers you can use to update your desktop, iPhone, iPad, or Samsung Galaxy.

Just click the links below to download these FREE Christian wallpapers below…

Love Never Fails

DESKTOP WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

IPHONE WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

IPAD WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

SAMSUNG WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly

DESKTOP WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

IPHONE WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

IPAD WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

SAMSUNG WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

God Is Good

DESKTOP WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

IPHONE WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

IPAD WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

SAMSUNG WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

The post DOWNLOAD // Free Christian Wallpaper appeared first on Christianbook.com Blog.

All you need to do is, click to download and then print out at home! Stick it up at your desk, on your fridge, or wherever you’ll be sure to see it each and every day. You’ll never miss an important date again! Or at least not this month, anyway.

[[ CLICK TO DOWNLOAD JULY 2019 CALENDAR ]]

[[ CLICK TO DOWNLOAD ]]

The post July 2019 Calendar Download appeared first on Christianbook.com Blog.

We’ve also included a Bible verse as a daily reminder as you make your way through the month. Want to stick this April 2019 to your desk or fridge? Simply click the image to download and print it out!

[[ CLICK TO DOWNLOAD ]]

[[ CLICK TO DOWNLOAD ]]

The post April 2019 Calendar Download appeared first on Christianbook.com Blog.

Simply click the image below to download, print it out and fill in all those important dates. Happy March, all!

[[ CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD ]]

[[ CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD ]]

The post March 2019 Calendar Printable appeared first on Christianbook.com Blog.

Go ahead and chase away those proverbial winter blues by downloading these FREE Christian wallpapers….

But First, Pray

DESKTOP WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

IPHONE WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

SAMSUNG GALAXY WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

IPAD WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

Greater Is He

DESKTOP WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

IPHONE WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

SAMSUNG GALAXY WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

IPAD WALLPAPER // CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

Love them? Make sure you share them with friends and family! 

The post DOWNLOAD // Christian Wallpaper with Words of Faith appeared first on Christianbook.com Blog.