August 8
Our Ministering Assignment Went Nowhere for a Year
We had two sisters on our ministering list and no evenings to give them. Here's what finally worked, and what I'd tell anyone stuck in the same spot.
By Melissa Whitakerwith love, Melissa
Autumn · October
Every essay, every home note.
The complete archive of Melissa Whitaker's essays and reflections on LDS Family Life, organized around family discipleship, honest motherhood, marriage, faith at home, and the home rhythms that shape a family over time. Showing older posts, page 8.
Family discipleship
Practical essays on prayer, scripture study, Sabbath patterns, and building a faithful home culture in ordinary life.
Motherhood & marriage
First-person reflections on parenting, emotional honesty, family fatigue, closeness, and raising children without performance.
Home rhythms
Home notes on homemaking, hospitality, steadiness, and the spiritual texture of ordinary family routines.
Essays
August 7
We Talked for a Quarter Mile About the Drive Home
David and I walk on Thursdays, and I've learned what to leave off the walk. A few small habits for talking about something besides the calendar.
By Melissa Whitakerwith love, Melissa
August 6
How I Stopped Measuring Myself Against the Mom in the Foyer
One remark in a church foyer, years of comparing, and the small things that finally gave me a quieter week. They don't last forever, but they work.
By Melissa Whitakerwith love, Melissa
August 5
What to Say to Your Child After You've Yelled
A plain look at apologizing to a child after you've lost your temper, and what the Savior's patience asks of a parent who is out of gas.
By Melissa Whitakerwith love, Melissa
August 4
Katie Asked What You Even Do With Twenty-Five Minutes
A friend texted me the night the new Sunday videos came out. Here's what I know about twenty-five minutes and what I'm telling my kids before September 6.
By Melissa Whitakerwith love, Melissa
August 3
A Two-Week Dinner Plan for Six, and the Beans I Left at Home
Fourteen dinners on paper before we left for the lake, five meals on repeat, and what I buy in bulk and what I've quit buying.
By Melissa Whitakerwith love, Melissa
August 2
Esther Isn't a Pep Talk for Eleven-Year-Olds
Caleb starts sixth grade as the only member in his group of friends, so I looked closely at what Mordecai actually asks Esther.
By Melissa Whitakerwith love, Melissa
August 1
What to Read Aloud When Your Kids Are Eleven, Eight and Two
Chapter books that hold a sixth-grader and a third-grader at once, the ones I'd skip, and what to hand a two-year-old while you read.
By Melissa Whitakerwith love, Melissa
July 31
Lily's First Allowance and the Question About Grandma's Card
Three paper cups, five dollars and one very exact eight-year-old. How we started tithing on a first allowance, and what we do with money from Grandma.
By Melissa Whitakerwith love, Melissa
July 30
What to Tell Your Kids About Temples You'll Never Visit
Two temple announcements came out Monday, one in Mexico and one in Colorado. Here's what I say to a two-year-old, an eight-year-old and an eleven-year-old.
By Melissa Whitakerwith love, Melissa