get ready, get set, get served!

Without a doubt, just like his dad, our oldest son's love language is "acts of service".  From the time he was very young, we noticed how he always loved to do things for other people.  Whether helping to organize a drawer, put away groceries, or pick up the back yard, he has consistently looked for ways over the years to do things for other people.  When you have a child whose love language is "acts of service", there are a couple of points to keep in mind.  First, don't forget to offer your thanks and praise to your child for putting others first.  It is often easy to overlook letting them know how much you appreciate them since you are so used to seeing them do things for other people and it can become commonplace to you.  Second, remember that your child experiences love best when you in turn show your love to them through "acts of service".  This is the child who will notice that you consistently provide dinner for them or make sure they have clean laundry every week.  Look for small ways throughout the week to do out-of-the-ordinary acts of service too and see how you will feed your child's love bank account.  For example, when the school week was particularly challenging for him one week, I just came in and offered to help him file his papers when I knew he was going to be hard pressed to get everything done by the end of the day on that Friday.  It was just a small thing and it is normally something he just does himself.  However, offering to help him in that way at that particular moment went a long way in telling him that I loved him.  So keep your eyes open and look for how your "acts of service" child is expressing their love and how you in turn can let them know that you love them too!
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