Adam McLane

Category: parenting

  • Daddy, if you love me…

    I love spending solo time with my kids. And I really want them to enjoy spending time with me. We spend lots of time doing stuff together as a family, but I think there’s something special about the ratio being 1:1 (or 1:2) instead of 5:2. At least once per month I try to take…

  • The Big Picture of Parenting

    Thinking about this– I know I have two huge handicaps. I didn’t grow up under “ideal circumstances” but I still turned out just fine. My own kids are only ten, almost eight, and five months. I’m not a parenting expert by any means. In fact, because I didn’t grow up with a strong relationship with…

  • The role of adolescent consent in parenting

    Kristen and I now officially see the precipise on our horizon. Megan, our oldest child, turned 10 yesterday. Within a few years we will be in the thick of adolescence. (And all of the parents I’ve worked with over the years will simple laugh. Not a polite giggle. An evil laugh because now I will…

  • Introducing lent to the kids

    Introducing lent to the kids

    Kristen and I decided to introduce lent to our church hating, Awana loving kids. Our kids aren’t game for anything. I get jealous when I go to my friends house and their kids would walk across the desert for a glass of water just because mom or dad said it’d be fun and meaningful. My…

  • Tammy’s Christmas Present

    Tammy, our fictional daughter, has once again earned a lump of coal as her Christmas present. This is all she is getting on December 25th. You can tell her now. She’s firmly earned it with yet another year of bad behavior. Such a brat! Megan and Paul, ever reminded of their elder sisters sinful life,…

  • A culture of fear

    Last night I got a Facebook wall post by a former neighbor and childhood friend. He posted some Google Streetview links to the places where we grew up, including the elementary school that we walked to. It didn’t take me long to get curious about our daily walk to and from James Madison Elementary School.…

  • Danger Boy

    “That was so cool! A little scary. Can we go faster next time?“ These are the words of my five year old yesterday. Towards the end of the day Paul came to the office to spend time with me because it was abundantly clear mom needed a break from his antics. Not sure how I…

  • 5 Best Online Communities for Kids

    If you don’t have young kids, than you probably have no idea that social networking has really taken off for kids. In fact, I’d call these social play sites. Our kids are completely addicted to them. They are safe, fun, and most of them teach values that any parent would like to encourage. Here are…

  • Moms: What they Want from You

    Moms: What they Want from You

    This is appearing in the May issue of the Romeo Peach, our church’s monthly newsletter. May is here. A month of new flowers, school winding down, and your house is full of abnormal chaos. The grass is now green and the cobwebs are getting cleared as cabin fever turns into “end of school countdowns,” prom,…