Our family is in a valley right now. Thus the extremely late blog post. But I find comfort in the wisdom a sweet friend of mine shared on social media after losing her mom and dad. There are some moments when I am overwhelmed with the goodness of our Lord! This morning as I reflected over the last few years in the valley of death, I am ...
Day to Day
When Technology is Out of Control in Your Home
Because technology is such a large part of our lives, it is easy to become overwhelmed and unsure how to manage it in our homes. We shared the scary statistics in last week's blog post and podcast, but we can't run away from electronics. Where is the balance between allowing technology use and not? I don't have all of the answers, but based upon ...
Blind Spots in Parenting: Technology Part 2
A favorite phrase of this ministry's is "Begin with the end in mind." It's far easier to make parental decisions if you know where you desire to end up! This is especially true in the realm of technology. How you want your child to utilize smartphones, tablets, and video games when they are 18 should guide the decisions you make when they ...
Blind Spots in Parenting: Technology, Part 1
What has surprised you as a parent? In my 18 years of parenting, a few blind spots have caught me off guard, particularly in the areas of technology, sexual purity, discipline, and raising successful kids. Why do I call them blind spots? Because these are issues that I couldn't see clearly as I traveled the roads of parenting. I needed the ...
New Year, New You – Really?
It is just a few days into the new year and I wonder how many of you have dropped the resolution(s) you made for 2023? Or maybe you never made one to begin with. How often do we make goals only to feel like a failure when we can't keep them? Maybe resolutions are dumb and we are actually setting ourselves up for failure. This was my sentiment ...
Best Soup Recipes
I turned to our Facebook community because I needed help getting out of a rut. A soup rut. The answers flowed in - 363 comments to be exact - suggesting soups to add to my repertoire. Knowing this list was too good to lose, I created a combined directory to reference. I know you will want to keep this collection as well (Pin ...
How to Overcome Loneliness in Motherhood, Part 2
When Heidi and I hit record on this podcast we thought we'd address a listener's question about experiencing loneliness in motherhood. Because as we started processing our own experiences, we discovered that loneliness isn't something that only happens during one season of motherhood. In fact, feeling alone occurs throughout our lives. Part 1 of ...
Will You Walk with Me?
Her slumped shoulders and tired eyes said it all. A look that I have seen so many times at church… in restaurants… at the park… at Walmart. The same image sometimes reflected in the mirror. This is the image of mommas who are absolutely, positively overwhelmed and exhausted. My heart hurts each time I cross ...
How to Get a Child to Stay in Bed, Part 2
After 3 1/2 weeks of returning Little Man to his bed, we conquered the war! If you read Part 1 of this series, you know that this didn't happen without consistency. Some kiddos don't put up much of a fight at bedtime. But then there are those who are relentless. The above three key points made all of the difference with our spirited Little ...
How to Overcome Loneliness in Motherhood, Part 1
Can you relate to this momma's honest question? Melanie and Heidi, have y'all ever struggled with loneliness, especially when you had young kids. I have a 6-year-old, 2.5-year-old twins and a 7-month-old and I feel stuck at home. I want to connect with other adults but am not finding ways to do it where it is lifegiving and not an added drain. ...