Our sweet little Sophie is not always so sweet. In fact, when we have to wake her up in the morning she can be quite a bear... not the cute, cuddly kind either! It has been a daily battle since she started first grade (I put her in afternoon Kindergarten to save myself the hassle as long as possible). This year we tried a reward system. Every day that she was able to get up without complaining or arguing and be kind to her family through the morning, she earned a scoop of popcorn kernels to put in a jar. When the jar was full, she earned a prize. This system worked great for quite a while, but as we head toward the end of the school year, the novelty is wearing off just a bit. Recently, I decided to start doing a quick devotion (pictured above) and prayer time with the girls first thing in the morning. Their alarm goes off, I come in, and (usually) before they are even out of their beds, I sit on the edge and read the devotion then pray over their day. This has had an effect that I wasn't even counting on. Taking this time to glean some wisdom from the Word and praying with the girls has made such a difference. It sets the whole tone for our morning. I'm not saying that Sophie is magically perfect, but she gets up with a much better attitude and outlook, and I am able to respond to her with more patience and grace. I wish I would've started doing this a long time ago!
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