How does Religion Affect Parenting?

Parenting can be stressful, challenging and exhausting at times. Parents need all the support they can get, especially when raising kids in today’s highly connected, digital world. Parents of all religious beliefs want to do what is best for their children, but they often face challenges and difficulties that might not have been anticipated. There are so many different ways in which religion affects parenting.

Why is Religion Important to Parents?

The importance of religion to parents depends on their particular faith or beliefs. Parents may choose to raise their children in the same religion or belief system that they were brought up in, or they may choose to guide their children towards a particular faith. Parents often feel that their faith gives them strength and guidance in their lives, as well as in their parenting.

The particular religion or belief system that a person practices often impacts the way they choose to parent.

There are many ways in which religion can affect parenting, including helping parents make decisions and providing them with the motivation they need to succeed in the challenging art of parenting.

Impact of Religion on Parenting Styles

Parenting styles are the approach or strategies that a parent uses to raise their child. These styles include authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, and uninvolved. A parenting style is strongly influenced by the parents’ cultural and religious beliefs.

Authorities often recommend an authoritative parenting style, which combines love, warmth and acceptance with firm limits, expectations, and structure. Parents who are authoritarian often have clear rules and expectations, but they have difficulty with the unconditional love and acceptance aspects of the parenting approach.

Religious Beliefs and Parenting Behaviors

Parents who strongly believe in certain religious beliefs often employ parenting behaviors that reflect those beliefs. For example, parents who believe in teaching children to be more flexible will have children who can be more versatile and can work any job such as a towing company like towing service San Jose. Parents who have strong religious beliefs usually raise their children with those same beliefs.

It is good because these parents are guided by a set of standards and principles that they believe to be right and true. This can help parents make important decisions about their child’s upbringing.

Important Qualities Of A Godly Mother

A good mother also takes care of herself and says “yes” to life. This role model lets children grow wings. A mother who radiates happiness also makes children happy, yes, it’s that simple sometimes.

Give and allow physical closeness

Physical closeness is a basic need of every child, as important as eating and sleeping. There are many ways and small gestures to create this closeness by cuddling, snuggling and also by playful wrangling, tickling and fighting. The security that children experience through the tenderness of their mother strengthens them for the rest of their lives.

Real listening and honest interest in the child

When someone really listens to you, your heart opens and you feel accepted, meaningful, seen and just plain good. No wonder actually listening is at the top of this list of important qualities of a good mother.

Unconditional love

Children want a maternal love that is unconditional, that is, not linked to good behaviour or achievement. To be loved, even if you’re in a bad mood, stubborn, annoying. That’s what all children want from their mothers.

Trust in the childInverseGeek

If someone trusts you, that inspires you. Adults also feel and appreciate the effect of trust and confidence. And even more important is this attitude of trust for children. A mother who lets her child try things out and trusts him to find solutions empowers him to master challenges, big and small, on his own. And from this grows self-confidence which is a capital for the whole life.

Courage to be imperfect and not afraid of making mistakes

A good mother is not a super mother. Who likes people who think they are doing everything right? People are imperfect and not perfect at all and the most wonderful are those who can also admit their weaknesses with a loving wink. Mothers who do this demonstrate to their children that authenticity feels good and they are forgiving of their children’s imperfections.

Have time for children, gladly and with joy

No, a good mother doesn’t have to be constantly playing and having fun with her children. But all children want a mother who always makes time for them, for example involving them in simple household chores. And a mother who sometimes just spends carefree, seemingly useless time with them, fooling around together and having fun with their kids. Having fun together going through the complicated digital world in InverseGeek can be a good bonding for a mother and children.

8 Flowers for Your Garden to Remind You of Mary

Pink Roses

 

Nine percent of Flanders consists of gardens. Three times as many as all nature reserves combined. In our garden, we can make a tangible difference to the planet. By the way, did you know that gardening is also good for your soul? Nature experience and religion have known many cross-pollinations for millennia.

The great devotion to Mary is reflected in dozens of flowers and plants that refer to her through:

  • color: white and (sky) blue are the colors of Mary,
  • Biblical references: e.g. the lily,
  • symbolism: e.g. humility,
  • Legends
  • name of the plant,
  • yes, even the smell!

We chose the 8 most important Marian flowers and mention a few others in passing.

#1 Rose – Rosa

With dot on number 1 of the Marian flowers are of course the rose. Just think of the rosary, a wreath of roses, and the Marian prayer around the lives of Jesus and Mary.

In another well-known ecclesiastical prayer, the Litany of Loreto, Mary is called the mystical rose. Referring to the Immaculate Conception, born free of original sin, theologians sometimes call Mary the thornless rose.

Roses in your garden

There are hundreds of varieties of wild roses and cultivated varieties. It may even be the most glorified garden plant. If you would like roses in your garden, there are a few points of attention.

  • Roses usually do not like wet feet, but also do not like dry ones. Always damp, but not soaking wet. Yes, roses are pretty picky. Clay soil and sandy soil are less suitable because they are too wet and too dry respectively. In the summer you will have to pour. Know what you’re getting into.
  • For exuberant flowering, most roses need nutrition. Fertilizing is the message.
  • Place roses in a spot in full sun (more than 6 hours of sunshine a day) with shelter from the wind.
  • Roses are susceptible to pests and diseases, such as aphids, nematodes, the rose beetle, star soot dew, true and downy mildew, etc. That is also good to know before you start. Plants that are in the right place are less bothered by this than plants that are in the wrong place.
  • Cultivated varieties are usually more precise than their wild predecessors.
  • Roses come in all scents and colors. But not every type of rose smells equally strong. If you want to enjoy the rose scent in the moonshine, look for a fragrant rose.
  • Roses are usually shrubs, but climbing roses can lead you along a wall or pergola.
  • Oh yes, no roses without thorns. But you already knew that, didn’t you? Thornless roses are sold with few or very small spines.
  • Planting is done between November and March, when it is not freezing, such as trees.
  • Roses are easy to propagate by cuttings.

#2 Lily – Lilium

In second place of all Marian flowers, just after the rose, comes the lily. There are more than 100 species. One of them may call itself Madonna lily, the Lilium candidum. Just like Mary, this white lily symbolizes purity and virginity. In biblical references to the lily, Christians read a symbolic reference to Mary, as in the Song of Songs (2:2):

Like a lily between the thistles, so is my girlfriend among the girls.

White lilies are regularly seen at weddings and in Christian paintings. In Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of the announcement of the birth of Jesus to the Virgin Mary, the angel Gabriel wears a white lily. Saints are often depicted with a lily as a sign of virginity, such as Joseph, Clare of Assisi, and Anthony of Padua.

Lilies in your garden

  • Lilies are bulbous plants, such as tulips and daffodils. So you buy and plant flower bulbs. Usually, you do that in the spring for flowering in the summer. The Madonna lily is preferably planted in the autumn. When purchasing, make sure that they are fresh, firm bulbs and not wilted or moldy onions.
  • Plant them in partial shade, not in full sun.
  • They grow to a height of more than a meter, the Madonna lily even up to 180 cm. Giving some support may be needed.
  • You can also use lilies from your own garden as a cut flowers. Leave half of the stem so as not to deplete the plant and do not cut from the same plant every year.
  • Lilies use a lot of food. After 4 or 5 years it is best to transplant them to another spot. You do that when the foliage has died off, around September-October. Dig up the bulbs, take them apart and plant them elsewhere. That is also the easiest way to propagate lilies. Plant them deep enough, at least 10 soil on top of the bulb. You can plant whoppers yourself 15 cm deep. The Madonna lily does not want that deep, 8 cm is enough.

#3 Blue lis – Iris germanica

The sword-shaped leaves of the blue lis, bearded iris, or sword lily, recall the sword of sorrow and pain that symbolically pierced the Heart of Mary. At Jesus’ consecration in the temple (Luke 2:22-32), Simeon spoke these prophetic words to Mary:

He will be a sign that will be contradicted, and you yourself will be pierced like a sword.

The blue of the flowers also refers to Mary as the queen of heaven. Benedict XVI writes about this: She is queen in Her service to God for the benefit of mankind, She is the queen of the love with which She experiences Her self-giving to God to join the plan of salvation of man.

The three-part flowers, for Christians a reference to the Trinity, are a popular symbol in iconography. Until today. For example, the logo of the Brussels-Capital Region is an iris.

Finally, the scent of the blue lis is part of many well-known perfumes.

Blue lis in your garden

  • Plant the thick rhizomes of the blue lis in a sunny place or in partial shade. The soil must be well permeable to water because if the blue lis is too wet, it will rot. It can withstand drought well.
  • The blue lis can fall prey to the iris caterpillar or fungal diseases.
  • 6 weeks after flowering in June, you can dig up the rhizomes, divide them and plant them out again to propagate the plant. By the way, it’s best to do that every few years. Cut the leaves halfway, plant the rhizomes straight and let them protrude a bit above the ground.

 

ALSO READ: Important Qualities Of A Godly Mother

 

#4 Lily-of-the-valley – Convallaria majalis

The lily-of-the-valley or mayfly has everything in it to be able to call itself Mary flower: it is white (purity, virginity), it blooms in May (Marian month), it smells (beauty, holiness) and the name refers to the lily. You don’t need much imagination to recognize the rampant plant in this Bible passage:

And what are you worried about your clothes? Learn from the lilies in the field how they grow. They don’t work, they don’t spin. But I tell you: even Solomon with all his splendor was not dressed as one of them. (Matthew 6:28-29)

According to a legend, the hanging bells originated from the tears that Mary wept at the tomb of Jesus. For the same reason, the broken heart (Dicentra spectabilis) is sometimes called Maria tears.

Lily-of-the-valley in your garden

  • The lily-of-the-valley grows via rhizomes that you can plant out in the autumn in a shady place (shade to partial shade). Place the sticks horizontally and cover with 2 cm of soil.
  • Be warned that it can quickly take over a large part of your garden. You can undoubtedly get rhizomes from someone who has too many.
  • All parts of the May bell are poisonous.
  • Furthermore, you do not have to worry about it. Like the biblical lilies on the field, they can really teach you to worry less. 😉

#5 Daisy – Bellis perennis

After the absolute top 4 of the Marian flowers, there is a long list of flowers that refer to Mary more laterally. The daisy is reminiscent of Mary because it blooms in May and because it is white and humble. But equally white and humble are the similar flowers of the daisy, the feverfew, the chamomile, and some asters.

Daisy in your garden

  • Daisies often grow spontaneously in the grass. Want more? Then do not fertilize and do not mow too often is the message. They love a sunny spot.
  • The daisy (Leucanthemum) is the big sister of the daisy. He also likes full sun, but pouring in the summer will be necessary to enjoy it for a long time.
  • Feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium) has smaller flowers and is better able to withstand drought than daisies. It also has an attractive light green, feathered leaf.
  • Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) can also have dryness. It is an annual field weed that spreads easily. The flowers of the real chamomile can be drunk as tea.
  • The white forest aster or autumn aster (Aster divaricatus) can have a lot of droughts and also shade. It blooms in late summer and autumn when many other flowers have already thought it for granted.

#6 Forget-me-not – Myosotis sylvatica

It sometimes seems that all blue flowers can symbolically refer to the heavenly kingship of Mary. Examples are the cornflower, the March violet, and the periwinkle.

The forget-me-not stands out a bit in that category. Because it is such a humble flower and because the color is just that sky blue with which the cloak of Mary is so often depicted.

Forget-me-not in your garden

  • Forget-me-not is a native forest plant for a spot in the shade or partial shade.
  • It’s a two-year-old. In the first year, it forms only leaf. In the second year, the characteristic blue flowers appear. Forget-me-nots sow themselves smoothly.
  • There is also a pink version (Myosotis alpestris) and a so-called Chinese forget-me-not (Cynoglossum amabile, not related to the myosotis). The latter is not native, but sky blue and also annual, so that you can already enjoy flowers in the year that you sow.

#7 Spotted lungwort – Pulmonaria officinalis

Spotted lungwort is one of the earliest bloomers in the garden in February-March. It also has a decorative fluffy, white-spotted leaf.

Not only the blue flowers refer to Mary. According to legend, the white spots on the leaf originated when Mary spilled drops of breast milk when feeding her child Jesus. The same legend is also told about the milk thistle (Silybum marianum).

Spotted lungwort in your garden

  • Spotted lungwort does well in a damp (but not wet) spot in the shade or partial shade.
  • Leaves and flowers of spotted lungwort are edible. Also that of the milk thistle by the way. You don’t taste any of that breast milk. 😉
  • There are cultivated varieties with white and pink flowers.

#8 Lady bed straw – Galium odoratum

As the last of the list, there is the group of plants whose name or popular name refers to Mary. We already mentioned the milk thistle (Silybum marianum) and the maria tears (Dicentra spectabilis). Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) is also called our lady’s glove and the dreaded weed hedgeweed (Calystega sepium) has the beautiful regional names ourlievevrouwhemdeke and onzelievevrouwglazeke.

Lievevrouwebedstro is not a regional name, but the official Dutch name for Galium odoratum. It occurs naturally in Flemish beech forests but is fairly rare there. The best chance of finding it is at forest chapels and Mariaoorden where it could maintain itself after planting.

In addition to the name and the white color, the smell (odoratum) also refers to Mary. That sweet smell spreads the leaf only after wilting. Bags of dried lady bed straw used to be placed with linen against moths.

According to a legend, Mary gave the fragrance to the herb out of gratitude because Joseph had made a bed for her. According to another legend, Anna, Mary’s mother, collected a fragrant pillow full of lady bedstraw to help Mary sleep. As a thank you, the plant got its name. With legends, you can go in many directions.

Lady bedstraw in your garden

  • Lievevrouwebedstro is a low-growing ground cover for a shady spot, for example under a tree. The plant prefers to be a bit moist, but it also goes dry. Sunny and dry are not possible.
  • In the moist shade, it will spontaneously expand through underground foothills. You can’t call it a real usurer.
  • The aromatic leaves and flowers are (in moderation) edible and can be used in salads, drinks (e.g. with white wine and a slice of orange in the so-called Maitrank), and as for tea.
  • Lady bedstraw can easily be propagated by dividing in spring or early autumn.

 

How to Start a Mom Blog: Sharing The Joys Of Motherhood

Mom Blogs are online platforms that provide a space for mothers to share their experiences and thoughts on parenting, pregnancy, breastfeeding, and other related topics.

How To Start A Blog For Moms

Mom Blogs are a unique online platform that provides a space for mothers to share their experiences and thoughts on parenting, pregnancy, breastfeeding, and other related topics. Mom Blogs offer an opportunity for women to connect with one another through their shared experience of motherhood. They also give parents the opportunity to find out more about the latest research in health care and medicine as well as news in the community they live in.

Mom Blogs have become increasingly popular over the past few years because how they provide an opportunity for mothers to connect with one another through their shared experience of motherhood. The blogosphere has been able to reach a wide audience because of these women’s willingness to share their life experiences and their failures as well as their successes.

Read also: Promotional Products for Moms Work Best

How to Start Your Own Successful Mom Blog Today

Mom bloggers are more than just a hobby. They are a lifestyle, occupation, and a way to make money.

There is no single way to start your own successful mom blog. You can start with the basics and build out from there, or you can start small and then grow your blog into what it is today.

You might even be able to get started for free!

Tips & Tricks for Starting a Successful Mom Blog

A blog is a perfect platform for starting a successful mom blog. Blogs are interactive and provide the opportunity to engage with other bloggers. They also provide a sense of belonging and community, which is important for mothers.

Some tips for starting a successful mom blog:

  • Have an idea of what you want your blog to be about before starting it. This will help you get started on writing content that people want to read or share with their friends.
  • Consider how you will monetize your blog. Do you want to partner with a local business, sell ad space on your site, or get a sponsorship?
  • Make sure that you have some kind of brand identity before starting your blog. This will help people know what to expect from your writing and make them more interested in reading it.
  • Be open to feedback. The more feedback you get, the better your blog will become.
  • Learn how to use social media like Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram. If you are engaging with other bloggers on these networks, they may be willing to share their influencer list with you and help guide your efforts.

You can also use social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest to reach out to people who might be interested in your content. You can buy Instagram likes cheaply too if you want to boost your online presence on social sites like Instagram.

It’s important to have a target market in mind when you start your blog. This will help you find your niche and attract the right audience.