November 19, 2025
Joey and Carla Link
One of our daughters went to college 4 hrs. away and we weren’t able to see her much her first semester there. When she came home for Thanksgiving, we couldn’t wait to see her. She spent much of that short time home sleeping or sending messages to her school friends.
I asked her to do the dishes one night, and she asked me if there was a reason her sister couldn’t do them so she could text her friends. Needless to say, her dad and I asked her to put her phone away until she went back to school, telling her we had all been looking forward to seeing her and she only had one day left at home and we wanted to spend it together as a family.
What we learned from the experience is when your kids go away to their college/university studies, they usually come back as guests, rather than as the part of your family they left as. The best thing to do once they settle in is to set boundaries that work for both of you during their stay.
1. When kids come home for a holiday or summer break, they have just completed mid-terms, finals and have written term papers for each subject. They are tired, so suggest an early bedtime for all the first night they are home and realize they will sleep in the next morning.
2. Put limits on phone use for all of you during the visit.
3. Have each of your kids pick one thing they would like to do as a family while their sibling(s) is home.
4. Plan a date with your home-for-the-holiday kid, with both parents and him/her.
SURPRISE THEM! Serve food/baked goodies this kid likes to eat, knowing he/she probably didn’t get it at school. Joey took our college-age kids’ cars and washed, vacuumed and filled the tanks with gas.
Most of all enjoy them! When their college days are over, marriage or their career is just around the corner and a whole new dynamic comes with it.
“The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice;
he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him.”
Proverbs 23:24
On Being Wise in Your Own Eyes
This presentation looks at the forms that being wise in one’s own eyes can take. It shares how parents can know if they are dealing with a child who is characterized by pride and arrogance and if so, what can be done about it.
Sale prices:
MP3: $4.99 Sale $3.99
PDF: $4.99 Sale $3.99
Use code NOV23 at checkout by November 23,2025 for $1 off the MP3 & PDF
Parenting Made Practical Podcasts
#26 Respecting Siblings – Respecting a sibling is one thing, but treating them with respect is another. This podcast shares what that difference is and how to work with your kids to treat their siblings with the respect they want from them.
Click the title or search Parenting Made Practical in your favorite
podcast app to listen!