madameblogalot

I have a couple of traditions for each of my kids’ birthdays. As yesterday was my son’s 16th birthday, I spent the day in concentrated prayer for him and the different needs in his life. I began this tradition two years ago. It has made a real impact on me and has been a source of encouragement for my kids.

Another thing I do on their birthday is to write in a journal dedicated to each child. I began this before my son was born. I do write in the books on occasions through the year, but not usually. It is mostly filled with entries on their birthday (or just past in a couple years.) I am planning to give these journals to my kids, probably when they turn 18, but I have not decided just yet. I can’t look through the journals too often, I get too emotional. I was really good about writing in them when the kids were small. I wrote their likes and dislikes and milestones as well as my emotions. I guess as they got older it got harder to put some of these things down, as my emotions were not always sugary sweet during pre-adolescence and these turbulent teen years. But I think it’s fair for them to know it has not always been easy (I am sure they know it anyway!) Usually, though I jot down how they have grown and some ways they are exhibiting that growth. I think it will be a nice thing for them to read when they get old enough to really appreciate it (maybe not til they have their own child, I don’t know…) I hope to continue these traditions for my kids and that it will continue to make an impact on their lives.

With a teen in high school and one not too far behind, we know that college is looming just on the horizon for us. My husband had to pay his own way through school, and we have pretty well told our kids they will have to do as much. My son is hoping to get as many scholarships as possible. We know a girl who worked very hard to research all the obscure scholarships to get every penny she could. I also read about another teen who spent her summer sending out around 100 scholarship applications. She received 37 of them, not bad I say.

When I came across a site offering free college scholarships, of course I had to check it out. I don’t know a lot about the site yet, but I have checked out how they go about giving their money away. The site sponsors put money into scholarships where students earn points to be put into a random drawing. The only qualifications are that you peruse the sponsor site or perhaps take a survey. Then the student earns points to put his/her name into the drawing. The student must be enrolled in a college as the money won is sent directly to the school. But high school and even middle school students can go ahead and set up an account and begin earning points. Then, when they get to college, they can begin redeeming their points for free scholarship money!