by Kimberly | Oct 19, 2017 | Books, mothering, parenting
As mamas, we all need help – and having resources to help us in our journey with God, especially in the little years that can be so lonely, help tremendously.
Lord Have Mercy is a devotional written by Ellen Miller for moms – and it doesn’t matter what stage your kids are in.
I love how it is saturated with Scripture. I love how they are short because you know that moms don’t have all the time in the world to do a quiet time. I love it how it is practical and calls you to action.
But, I don’t really see that it is so much better than other Mom devotionals out there – or even devotionals in general. I just didn’t strike me as a must read or must recommend. It may be perfect for another mom, and it is saturated with the Word of God, but just a personal opinion.
Thanks Tyndale House for the book. All opinions are my own.
by Kimberly | Apr 27, 2017 | Books, mothering, parenting, Women
Ok – I’m not really a coffee fan. My mister wishes I would be, so we could sit at places and have cheap drinks (regular black coffee) and talk for hours on end. But, the drinks I like are 5$ so not quite as cheap.
But, I might go drink coffee after reading the Magic of Motherhood. Let me explain.
When you go to coffee with a friend, a true friend, one who shares your worldview, who champions what you are doing, who rejoices with you in the good, who encourages you even on the hard days. Or maybe its not coffee, but you have a margarita at their house, or enjoy some chips and guac together, or eat a bagel together, or a cupcake…friends you are comfortable with. Yeah, those friends…
That’s how I felt when I was reading The Magic of Motherhood. I felt I was chilling with some close friends, friends who were able to share whatever was on their heart, knowing that they shared the same biblical worldview as me (value of their children, value of being a mother, knowing that God loves them and has a great plan for their lives, knowing that we can’t do this thing called motherhood without the Gospel).
These friends knew they wouldn’t face judgment or shame for sharing what was on their hearts. These friends knew I would encourage them with truth.
My favorite genre of books is memoir/biography. I love the fact that the authors of memoirs feel the freedom to share what has gone on in their lives (the good, the bad, and the stuff you’d like to forget), and not feel that they would be punished for it. They were sharing what was going on in their lives so that others might be encouraged or learn from their lives. In biographies, we often learn that the people we look up to or admire don’t (or didn’t in some cases) have it all together.
In today’s Christian circles, we often feel like we have to put on a show to others like we have it all together. Or, we have to couch everything in quoting Bible verses so people will think that our hearts are saturated with truth (which they hopefully are but sometimes we do this just so people will not see the hurt in our hearts and any doubts we might have). When it comes to parenting, I’ve had experiences of shame and judgment when I’ve shared the struggles that I’ve had with motherhood. And I’ve experienced shame because my kids don’t always act perfect in public.
The Magic of Motherhood was like just sitting, reading, knowing I wasn’t alone, knowing that God is in charge and brings good, and we do go through hard stuff as mothers. And we won’t like every moment of it. And not once did I hear “the days are long but the years are short” or “enjoy every moment of it”. I read about real mamas who were sharing real struggles, real joys, real moments. And they even talked about their jobs and their husbands – knowing that when we are mamas life still goes on outside of our children.
If you are needing some encouragement along the motherhood journey, this is a good quick encouraging, non-notetaking, read. You can sit with a cup of coffee, in your yoga pants, and you don’t have to have a pen.
Thanks Tommy Nelson for this book. And you can win one – just tell me something you find fun about motherhood.
by Kimberly | Apr 12, 2017 | parenting, Shepherding Children
A few years back a sweet friend started displaying these gorgeous flowers in her social media feeds. I had really never seen them before, or at least didn’t have a category for them. These wild, round, ever going flowers with lettuce leaves just struck me as the perfect spring flower.
Ranunculus are wild. They sprout and twig all over the place. You can try to force it to go in the direction you want it to, but most likely it will just go right back to what it is doing and do its own thing. If you force it to much, it will break right off of its light green stem.
They can stand alone or be fine in a group. I went to a brunch recently for a great ministry and one of the attendees has designed beautiful tablescapes just with ranunculus. They were simple and elegant and fun and stunning.
The past few years I have gotten in the habit of going in to Trader Joes and waiting eagerly for them to arrive in the front of the store. For their little round faces to be smiling at me, begging me to take them home to adorn my table or bathroom counter. And every time I walk in the house I see them, and smile. And think of my friend. And think of my boys.
Now, what in the world do ranunculus have to do with raising children? Something I ask my boys: “Who made ranunculus?” God did they will respond. And you know what, God did make them. He made everything to be its perfectly designed self. He made elephants to have long trunks. He made giraffes to have long necks. He made ants to be small and strong. He made clouds to float along in the sky and carry buckets of rain and snow. He is a perfect Creator.
He made ranunculus to be their sprouty, wild, crazy, perfectly perfect selves.
And that is how he made both of my boys. He made them perfect in his image. He made them to each have a perfect path designed for them that will encounter many different things along the way. They will be different in their perfect unique ways. They will have their own journey and path to God. They will learn differently. They will respond to the world differently. They have different paths but ones that I pray will end at Jesus.
I can’t force them to be who I want them to be. I can tell them to obey and expect obedience, but I can’t choose their path for them. I can train them up in the way of the Lord, but ultimately their life with Jesus has been chosen by Jesus.
As I was designing some ranunculus pictures the other day, I was telling my boys about how God made them so unique and I was glad I get to have them for a little while. They were exploring the different colors, its scent, and even kissing it. I love having different ways of teaching my boys God’s truth and even good morals.
As they learn to explore more, watch shows that have good morals, I love to bring in the natural world and good wholesome shows like the ones I can find on PureFlix . As long as you are intentional about teaching your kids, the natural world, books, movies, television shows can all be great tools to teach your children about who they are and who God is.
by Kimberly | Mar 13, 2017 | Books, parenting
I’ve never counted them, but I would assume the parenting section at your local bookstore is probably one of the largest sections on the floor. You can easily find a parenting book to help you through and part of the parenting journey. From attempting to conceive, finding out your pregnant, how to birth the baby, how to swaddle your baby, how to get your baby to nap, get on a schedule, eat solid food, potty train, learn their ABCs. All of these books can be helpful to some degree.
When reading parenting books, I often say read whatever you can get your hands on, write down some notes that seem likely to work in your given situation, with your kids, or ones that you would like to try, talk it over with your husband or the people who help you parent, maybe run it by a group of other moms that you meet with or hang out with, and then try it. If it doesn’t work, move on. Don’t get so flustered. Not everything you read in every parenting book is going to be the right thing for your particular child or family.
Parenting with Grace and Truth, a new book by Dan Seaborn (I always think of West Wing when I hear the word Seaborn), is filled with practical help. To me, though, I felt it leaned more toward behavior and actions, rather than to the heart of your children, growing them with hearts that were pleasing to God. I know that there needs to be right actions. And at any stage of parenting you are working to get your kids to act right (we are working on manners right now, as well as many other things.
“Forgiveness was at the heart of Jesus, and as such, it is the foundation of the entire Gospel. God sacrificed His only Son for the forgiveness of our sins – past, present, and future.” – Dan Seaborn
He helps families work through many different things likes crises or trying to become a healthy blended family. He wants to help you discover what your kids talents and abilities are – it is helpful to know what drives them and what makes them tick and what they are good at. I did appreciate the questions that he gave his readers to think through at the end of each chapter. When reading any book, if you are given questions, at least take the time to think through them – it will help as you digest the book and try to implement what you are reading.
If you would liked to find some great tips in this book, just leave me a comment. I’ll be choosing a winner soon – and thanks to SideDoor Communications, you can get a copy of it!
Thanks to SideDoor Communications for the book. All thoughts are my own.
by Kimberly | Jan 10, 2017 | Bible, Books, mothering, parenting
At the end of the day, motherhood can require a lot of us and we can be exhausted. We might be longing for a glass of wine, a dessert, a bubble bath, or just the ability to sit down and binge on Fixer Upper.
But, if we are faithful in finishing the day well with our children, we will reap the blessings. I am usually the one the put our sons to bed since my mister works retail and most evenings he gets home after bedtime. Depending on how the day has gone, I’m really just ready to turn off their lights and shut their doors. After brushing teeth of course!
I want to improve on my daily time with them at bed time. If my mister is home, we read a Bible story and each have time with one of our boys. I usually take the older and tuck him in or read him some Little House (we are working through this series). He sings the younger one a song and tucks him all in nice and tight.
The area I want to improve is the nights when I’m by myself, to actually read them a Bible story, pray with them, and then spend time with each of them in their rooms. Singing or reading or just talking. It may take an extra ten minutes, but I know that time is precious and I won’t get that back.
The resource we are going through now is the Bedtime Read and Rhyme Bible Stories. I like it more than I thought I would – and I usually continue the rhyme well after I’m done reading. It is note quite as crazy as Dr Seuss, but still fun. The pictures are engaging for the kids and the rhymes make it fun. Then the prayers at the end of each story allow us to focus our prayers at the end of the day.
How do you need to rescue or reprise bedtime? What have you read at bedtime or done that makes that transition easier?
You can answer the questions above for an opportunity to get this hardcover book for you and your family. Thanks Tommy Nelson Mommies for the book. All opinions are my own.
by Kimberly | Dec 6, 2016 | Books, mothering, parenting
Not a day goes by hardly where I don’t see a mom on facebook who is crying out for time away, a little time to herself, or is enjoying a much needed break.
This is how I understand the Word “Sabbath”: resting from work. God instituted the first Sabbath by resting from the creative process of the world. He rested, examining all He had made. Resting in its goodness. Resting from work. People in the work force usually get a day off during the week (at least one) and that helps invigorate them, giving them rest from their working.
Mommas don’t get a Sabbath. 24-7 we are thinking about our kids, washing clothes, changing diapers, driving, being a doctor-on-call, disciplining, loving, reading books, cooking, making juice cups. No matter how old your child is, mommas never rest from being a mom. So, the question needs to be asked, when does a Mom get a Sabbath?
Our older son is now coming in to Sunday night church with us. My husband and I have worked out a schedule for who gets to hang out with him during the service: reading books, playing, drawing, sticking dinosaur stickers everywhere, etc. When my mister is off on a Sunday, I hang out with Elijah in the pew. If he works that afternoon, then he gets to focus on our son during the service. I know one day will come when he can sit and completely focus on the service for 75 minutes, but he’s not there yet. So, we want each other to get some time to focus on the service. Its a good system.
One way my mister blesses me is giving me a regular Sabbath (a few hours) each week. On his day off, he will usually say something like “Go, have some quiet time.” He plays with the boys or takes them to a park. I can go just sit in the Word, do errands, be creative, meet with a friend, etc. That is my Sabbath. I try not to use that whole time to run errands, but if I’m not doing it with two preschoolers, those errands don’t feel like work. And usually once or twice a year, he will give me the whole day to go away, either with friends or by myself, to recharge, rest from being with the boys, feed my soul on the Word, read books, be in nature, etc. I can tell you that every time this happens, I come back more readily able to care for my boys well.
Some people would say that mommas don’t need time away. I would heavily disagree. If men worked 24/7 without any break people would think he is crazy because he would have burnout, or wouldn’t be obedient in taking care of his body, etc. But, if mommas ask for a break, most people say they are being selfish or aren’t being a good momma. Need is maybe too strong of a Word, but God showed us how to take a Sabbath, it is one of the things He commands, and that is a weekly rest. So, yes, I think it is a need. You just have to figure out how to do it.
Letitia Suk encourages women to take a break too – to be with God, to be silent, to walk, etc. She talks about how to retreat in Getaway with God. This book was different then I thought. She showed a lot of grace and variety. It wasn’t a “this is how you do it” book. It was here are some ideas, you are going to come against obstacles, here are ways to see if these retreats can work for you, etc. If you are planning a spiritual retreat, especially, I would encourage you to pick this book up to read during your planning stages.
I know some of you might be wondering: I can never get my husband to play with the kids and give me time alone. Or I am a single parent and can’t get time away. Or, my husband’s schedule won’t allow it and we don’t have money for childcare. Here are some thoughts:
Talk to your husband. Talk to him about your need for a Sabbath. Start small. Maybe request 2 hours, or 3. Work your way up to a whole day.
If your kids are small, see if you can swap with a friend so both of you can have a few hours of Sabbath to yourself.
If your kids are in school, use that school time to retreat and rest.
If you don’t have money for childcare – I think this is where your community (or church) comes in. We should be able to ask for help – and people should ask us how they can help, be willing to serve and be served. I know its hard.
Whatever you do, don’t go without rest from being a Momma. Its seriously rewarding and seriously hard! God gives us the much grace that we deserve!
Thanks to Litfuse for the book. All opinions are my own.
