Spring Break road trip west! (Wait, what don’t I know?)

In a couple of weeks, the Meyer family is jumping in a car and driving from Granger to the Grand Canyon to Las Vegas (where we’ll stay a week) and back home to Granger. That’s all we know. The rest of the details are yet to be figured out. That’s where you come in. 

I’m looking for fun, creative, must-see, must-do activities, eateries and experiences along the route or at our destination. We is smarter than me every time and we’ve never made this trek before as a family. What recommendations do you have? What should we see? What should we do? Where should we eat? What should we experience? What do you know that I don’t know?

Doesn’t this sound fun? Wanna help? Drop me an email with your advice and wisdom. I’ll send thank you gifts to the first, most original, most comprehensive, etc. (We did this a few years ago. It was great fun.)

I’ll be sure to post our final plans for everyone to see the results. Thanks for playing…the fate of our road trip is in your hands. 

My top 4 parenting books …

Earlier this week, I got the chance to share my story with a group of moms. I talked about my learnings in my journey from single teen mom to where I am today. It’s the first time I’ve told my story in a public setting like that. It was a tremendous honor. And, naturally, my emotions were a little raw. I almost can’t remember anything I said. Just kidding. I remember everything.  

Also in the past few days, I’ve had several conversations with peers about new challenges and opportunities that pop-up in the pre-teen and teenage years. In many ways, it’s a new playbook. Like going from college football to the NFL, we need to up our game and refine our skills. 

In spite of all my flaws, God has still entrusted me with two girls (24 & 14) and one boy (12). It’s my job to keep learning and leaning in to the support that He’s placed around me. In addition to that community, here’s four books I go to for practical, no-nonsense coaching:

• Surviving Your Adolescents. Phelan
• Parenting Teens in a Confusing Culture. Gregston
• How To Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk. Faber & Mazlish
• Parenting From The Inside Out. Hartzell

The surprising bonus about these books is this: even though they are written specifically about parenting, the communication and psychology principles apply to every form of communication—not just between parent and child. 

The art of clean up

I got this book today and it makes me happy.

Three things you may not know about our new site launch…

We went live late last night with a new GCCwired.com. Here’s three things you may not know about this launch: 

1. Old friends and the little web site that could. We had the same web site for nine years. NINE years. That’s really saying something considering it was built before smart phones, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, etc. And, the real miracle is that it was still working—integrating with new technologies and media like a boss. It was the little web site that could. We are so grateful for our partnership and tremendous run with the team at Aspire!One. How did they DO it? Those guys are amazing and we still look to them for counsel, creative approaches and new project ideas. 
2. New friends and new challenges. The new GCCwired.com is not just a new web site. It’s a launch that accelerates our 2016 vision to help our people Be the Church, Activate the Campus and Reproduce at Every Level. First we launched the Early Learning Center, then The Commons, then The Eatery, Reads & Things, then the LaPorte campus and now THIS! We’re changing paradigms and couldn’t do it without the help we’ve received from Plain Joe Studios. We are venturing into places we’ve never been before and they have been like new creative, technology and strategy sherpas. 
3. We’re live but we’re not done. Just like we started using our physical environments before all construction was 100% complete, we will do the same with our online environment. It’s 80% complete and now it’s time to let traffic start flowing through the space. This last 20% is a crucial step in the development process. We get to see how people use it. If things work like we anticipate. What needs adjusted. What bugs are hiding. We know people are going to find things and we’re loving the feedback already. This is where it gets fun. 

The top 7 reasons the new GCCwired is worth the learning curve…

The layout is going to be the single biggest adjustment for most people. Including me. It’s not linear but “fluid.” At first it messes with you. There will be a learning curve. But, the function behind the form makes it worth it. Here are 7 reasons why we’re jumping in with both feet. (Seven rhymes with heaven. Coincidence?)  

1. More usability for everyone. It’s a single web site that works everywhere-one URL and a dependable, consistent experience whether you’re on a computer, tablet, smart phone or TV. Currently the number one complaint we get over and over about our current site is about how you can’t use it on  different devices. Now, no matter what device visitors are using, they will get a better experience when viewing the website.  
2. Your content, all of the time. With the power search, it’s like a one-page web site. Each person brings what they want to the home page when they want it. Think minority report. Ultimately, a search-driven site (versus a hierarchical site) puts the mission within reach for more people by giving each user control of their own experience. This is a big win.  
3. Accumulated sharing. Empowers every individual to make positive contributions and “own” the site by using all social sharing links with a single URL. All research shows we will experience a higher conversion rate (people take action on content) because each individual will be able to interact with the site however they choose. It won’t matter what they use, or how they are wired, everyone can pop on, cruise around and end up with the answers they’re looking for. It’s more friendly, less sterilized. 
4. Less expensive to maintain. We will have a single site that feeds all devices instead of having to make an individual site for the phone, tablet, laptop, podcast, etc. We’ll reduce technology, maintenance and labor costs and free up funds for more ministry.  
5. More googlicious. One single site versus multiple sites will get a higher ranking and more traffic because we’re are combining numbers from multiple sites.
6. Better picture of single reality. Our analytical numbers should be much more accurate in tracking the number of true users. We can ultimately build a better report which helps us know more about our audience and serve them better.
7. Foundation for the future. This becomes even more important as we look at usage trends—the future is mobile. People are on the go—mobile and apps—24/7. This design allows us to move into that “on-the-go” space with real-time inspiration, hope, encouragement and resources. This multi-device site is just the first step in that direction.