mama wisdom day 1: my mom

Happy Mother's Day! Are you ready for this?!! Because I am so excited. I've got seven days lined up of thoughtful insights into motherhood gathered from the closest mom's to me: my own mom, my mother-in-law, my grandma and my sisters.

Being that today is mothers day, I think I had better begin with my own mom.

My mom, Margaret, has three kids: Mat, Annika and me. She has five grandkids under the age of six, with two more on the way this fall. She lives for her family and loves being with her kids and grandkids more than anything else in the world.

Mom is a creative-type who used her energy to make life special. A holiday didn't go by that wasn't filled with tradition and fun. Her life work was with children: as a kindergarden teacher, a preschool teacher and later director. She now serves as a caretaker of her community, waking up each morning with a simple prayer for God to lead her to someone who needs a friend for the day. How would you describe your mothering style?
Encouraging of the gifts God has given each of the children, encouraging them to be kind, tenderhearted and forgiving and I was thankful! Thankful that I didn't have to do it alone. When Paul was busy with church, there were always neighbors and friends from church (of all ages) who just "adopted" our kids.

What resources or who in your life was the most helpful in giving sound parenting advice?
I'm blessed with a large family who were great resources for helpful advice and rolemodeling.

Was there a specific part of mothering that challenged you and your confidence in being a mom?
Bedtime! Paul was often gone at night and by then I didn't have much patience. I marvel at our kids and their bedtime rituals with their children.

What is your favorite part of being a mama?
Holding a newborn on my chest. Being a grandma and watching my children love their children so well.

Do you have a favorite story or quote from one of your kids?
My sisters said many times, "Annika is going to be a wonderful 18 year old...if you should live so long." She was wonderful and I did live that long. Her strong will has served her well and now she has two young daughters who are just as delightful.

If you were to go back, and start your season of mothering all over again, what would you tell yourself?
Take time to sit and read with the kids

Anything else you would tell a first time, soon-to-be mom?
Enjoy it, trust that you know what your child needs, don't worry about being perfect. Enjoy each stage, it all goes so quickly. Take time for your spouse and your marriage, leave the kids with grandpa and grandma and don't be afraid to get a babysitter. Get to know your neighbors! It does take a village to raise a child.

Happy Mother's Day, Mom. I love that you are with your own mama today!

driving without my phone

My mom and aunt Louie have been watching Oprah's shows on the dangers of driving while on your cell phone. And my mom began a campaign to try to get me to stop using mine while driving.

The trouble for me, is that I drive in a straight line to work, 20 minutes, both directions. It's an easy commute...just keep driving straight. So I have found a habit of using this time as my time to call friends and family. My sister has commented that she always knows when it is 5:02 in Nebraska, because her phone mysteriously rings every day at this time (4:02 her time).

But mom has been laying it on thick...pleading for me to stop this habit now that I have a baby in me, and with hopes that I might end this bad practice before I'm trying to talk on the phone, drive my car and reach for fallen sippy cups on the floor of the back seat. (I've babysat enough to know this is very common.)

Rory has never approved of this multi-tasking either. The other day we were behind a car that was swerving so badly on the interstate, we truly thought the person was drunk. But she was just on her phone, tending to her toddler in the back seat and driving 75 miles an hour. He is happy that mom and Louie are pushing so hard.

So, beginning last Monday, I quit cold turkey. To do so, I literally had to start putting my bag with my phone in the back seat. If I left it accessible it was like my passenger seat became temptation island.

But the honest truth is...I had no idea I was this addicted, dependent and involved with that phone. This sort of healthy change can only lead to good things. I'll keep you posted.

it's time!

I just went to the store to get milk and saw a bin of watermelons. Skeptical that it might be too early, I decided to purchase just a quarter of a melon, wrapped up in plastic with a price tag of $1.79. I could take the risk with that price...if it was bad, it wouldn't be a huge loss.

But oh, to my utter delight, it was divine. Which means, it is watermelon season!

I ate half of this piece pictured with a fork on the cutting board. No time for a plate. No time to take it to the table.

As I devoured this beauty, I thought of three memories:

1. At some point in our childhood, my brother told me (while eating watermelon at a family picnic) that if he ever fell into a lot of money, he would buy watermelons in bulk, eat just the middles and give the rest to the poor. And I remember thinking he was genius.

2. In highschool I went camping with a few girlfriends. While other high schoolers were consuming other things in large quantities, the four of us decided to get an enormous watermelon, and we ate the entire thing in one sitting. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but it led to dozens of bathroom trips that night. Dozens of trips.

3. I remember with amazing clarity, the watermelon juice I was served one day in India. The watermelon had been in a cooler, and they put chunks in a blender, strained the seeds, and poured it into a frosty glass. It was hot that day, and I honestly had never been served anything more perfect in my whole life.

So here's to watermelon season! If it weren't for Christmas, I'd say it's the most wonderful time of the year.

a beautiful day at camp

After leading the adult retreat, I jumped right into more days of Adults with Special Needs. I had 26 people show up today, and we all got to take a hayrack ride, pontoon ride, go fishing and roast our hotdogs over the fire. We planted flowers and decorated flower pots for mothers day, made peanut butter pie, sang songs and shared in a Bible study. It was a busy, full day, and tomorrow I'll do it all again with another group of adults. The plan is to go to bed early tonight...

what a friend we have in Jesus

I just spent the past few days leading a retreat with this title for a great group of adults. We had a nice three days together, and shared many helpful and thoughtful conversations.

The focus of the retreat was on Psalms and Prayer. We learned a lot, and by the end of the retreat, I had them writing their own Psalm, based on the 23rd Psalm. We called them our Personal Psalm 23, taking each stanza and writing new words to correspond to our first line, "The Lord is my ______." We shared these Personal Psalms the last day, and there were lots of tears shed. It's amazing how powerful it is to recite the promises of God for our own individual circumstances.

I wrote one, and thought I'd share it with you.

My Personal Psalms 23:
The Lord is my baby's maker
He is the best creator, the king of all creation, and I have nothing to fear.

He knit me in my mother's womb
and I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
With great care, he is knitting this baby just the same.

He is good to teach me so much during this expectant time
like how the fierce love that I feel towards this child
is the same fierce love he has for me.

Even though I've missed a day or two of taking my prenatal vitamin,
I will not live in fear.
This is your kid. You are the one who started its beating heart.

You have a purpose and a plan for this little life; a future and a hope.
Even though hard days will come, and mistakes will be made,
You promise to be there.

Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life,
and the little life inside of me,
and we will worship and praise your name forever.

***

If you're looking for something new to try during your quiet time, give this a whirl. It's amazing how many promises we have stored in our hearts, and to write them out...applied to the worry or concern you are facing at this very moment is powerful and nurturing.