The Collide/Pocket Guide Giveaway is still going strong (get a free copy of Pocket Guide to the Bible with your subscription) and today I needed to ship out another box of signed books to the Collide team.

So last night was a book-signing night. My family and I have developed an excellent system of accomplishing this task.

1. Assign duties. Owen’s job was to remove the books from the box and stack them up next to Ellie. Ellie’s job was to open the books to the title page and place it in front of me. My job was to sign the books and place them into another stack. The kids offered to help me with the actual signing — “I could write my name, too,” Owen suggested — but I gently told him it was customary for just the author to sign the book.

2. Perform your task with creativity. Owen quickly discovered — or decided — that instead of leaning over the box to lift the books out, it would be better to sit inside the books and transfer them into a stack next to him. I couldn’t disagree. My theory has always been this: If you find a box that you can comfortably fit in, it’s almost always a good idea to climb inside. Just for kicks.

3. Work hard, but take breaks as needed. Owen has learned to read this year, so he kept getting distracted by the insides of the books he was managing. That’s cool. Breaks are good. And it’s not like I was gonna say, “Kids, stop reading Daddy’s book and get to work!”

Anyway, I have a good team of assistants.