I am all about avoiding conflict. There were chronic hot-buttons with our kids – the coveted favorite seat in the car, the first position for every occasion, and on and on. Every imaginable opportunity for conflict existed with 4 children. More times than not, I was sporting an invisible black and white striped referee shirt to deal with day-to-day events.

We came up with “it’s your day” to help eliminate conflict. Monday through Friday we rotated children; Saturday was my day and Sunday was my husband’s day. When it was “your day” you got to sit in the front seat of the car, be first for everything, and basically be royalty for the day. “It’s your day” also came with service opportunities, like setting the table.

The most meaningful use for “it’s your day” was prayer times. When it was “your day” you prayed at meals and at the end of the day came my all-time favorite family tradition – night-time prayers. We all gathered, usually on our bed, and prayed together at bedtime. If it was “your day” you chose the order of who prayed and then each person prayed a blessing over the “your day” person, who went last in the prayer line-up. It’s harder to go to bed angry when you’ve just prayed for each other.

“It’s your day” became routine, but remained meaningful. What started as a way to avoid conflict and assign some order turned into a stabilizer for our family. Although it’s been over 5 years since we enjoyed the practice of “it’s your day”, my heart will treasure the memories for life.