Cloth Diaper Giveaway Linky!

I stumbled across a FABULOUS treasure trove of cloth diaper giveaways!

Head on over to Baby Giveaways Galore and you'll find a wonderful Cloth Diaper Giveaway Linky!

Happy entering! 

Breathing a deep, long sigh of Relief

I have the amazing opportunity to become a Stay-at-Home Mom again.

I am beyond ecstatic. 

The whole working mom thing? I tried it for a year and a half. And I was not cut out for it.

I am emotionally and physically drained.

I am ready to be with my babies again. 

I am ready to be back in my element again.

My husband has amazingly completed his Master's degree in the time that I have been working. I am so proud of him!

I am ready for this next chapter in our lives. 

*Sigh.*

I will also, of course, be blogging more regularly again. I think one of the many reasons I am emotionally exhausted is because I haven't been able to have the emotional outlet of writing. I just haven't had the time. So, I will be rejoining the world of Mommy blogging! 

Stick with me!

Preparing my heart this season of Lent

I am trying to prepare my heart for this adventure of this Lenten season. Part of my journey this season will be to try to lift my heart to God through music and prayer, specifically on the way to and from work. One way I have been doing that this week is by listening to JJ Heller in the car (I have 35 minutes each way in the car each day!).

These lyrics touched my heart on Friday...

"If life is like a flower

Am I doing all that’s in my power 

To leave a fragrance behind 

It’s time to count my blessings

Forget about my savings account for a while

When I leave I want to leave a memory filled with love 

The kind you don’t forget 

When I go I want to be known 

As one who lived with no regrets 

I want them to say

What a glorious day

She had so much to gain 

But she gave it away 

And I want them to see something different in me 

And that I’m going to be free"

One of my struggles is letting MONEY control my heart. (Or realistically, the LACK of money.) My disciplines this season will hopefully re-focus my heart on the things of God, hopefully leading to my FREEDOM! I want to be a woman of God, not a woman of the world, who worries about the temporary things of this world, and let's those things control my life and my major life decisions.

It will be a work on progress, but I wanted to share my heart with you

sigh

Guys,  I miss being a stay-at-home mom.

I know I complained about it when I was doing it. I struggled a lot, actually.

But even on the worst day as a stay-at-home mom, at the end of the day, my worries and exhaustion was a result of loving and caring for my kids.

Can't beat that.

I am so tired of thinking and worrying about work when I get home. It's a struggle now to leave work worries at home, and focus on my kids when I get home.

I miss my kids. I love them.

I'll take an exhausting day of dishes, poop, vacuuming, naptimes, trips to preschool, and whining, over my current worries any day!

Independent Little Humans

Benny is 4.5 now ... and he has fully learned how to challenge authority. Up until recently, he was relatively agreeable, and full-out tantrums were extremely rare.

Well, now, his mission in life is to challenge every directive given to him. Every thing I tell him to do is met with a firm, "No!" or even worse... the smiling, and blatantly ignoring my words.

As a mother, this is obviously very distressing and tiring. How many times must I repeat myself?! My kids should listen to me, damn it! What happened to my little sweet child? That child that has always been mild-mannered and a good listener?

I must be failing as a parent!

Of course, I realize that this is normal. I realize that most parents go through this. What I need to remember is that this is normal for a reason. My kids are learning to be independent little humans!

I should rejoice in their tantrums, because that means they are learning to  have a voice for themselves.

After all, isn't that our big picture goal as a parent? Don't we want our kids to grow up into adults that can make their own decisions? Be on their own?

Don't get me wrong... I know there is parenting work to be done here. How do I react to tantrums? Truthfully? Sometimes I react very poorly, and throw an adult tantrum. Sometimes I yell and lose my patience. No wonder my kids lose their patience! My behaviors are modeling for them. It is my parenting goal to model empathy and respect during these frustrating moments. We often say, "Use your words" to our children. Our goal (even if we fail often) is to help our kids explore their emotions in those emotional moments.

We need to allow our children to feel their emotions. My goal is to let my kids be upset, but guide them to express their emotions in a way that is healthy. Yelling at others, hitting, throwing toys... these things are often a way children express their feelings of being angry, sad, tired, etc. As a parent, I want to see my children saying their feelings, allowing them time to feel those feelings, without lashing out.

You'll notice I keep saying "my goal is..." Of course, these parenting approaches are easier said than done. But these things are what I hope to do as a parent. We all fall short sometimes. Each day is a new day!


I'll never forget a conversation I had with my father after I got engaged in college. We were sitting at my grandparents' table in their sitting room. We were talking about future plans, and he told me, thoughtfully, and full of love, "As much as I want you to live in {our city} to be close to us, I'm glad you won't be. I think it's really important for you and Keith to start your own life, apart from us."

Wow. Now that I am a parent myself, I realize the significance of that conversation. It was the ultimate parenting moment for him. He had reached the time when his daughter was grown, and he had to let go. He had to gently and lovingly push me out of the nest. My mother and father had prepared me for this my whole life, by fostering my independence each step of the way. And guess what? I was okay! Keith and I learned how to rely on each other, how to start our own life, and what it meant to be independent. I hope we are so lucky to be able to sit back, let go, and watch our boys fly out of the nest. Maybe they'll even soar.

you are worthy {the anti-resolution post}

I hate when people comment on other people's weight.

The Good. Bad. Ugly. I hate it all.

No matter what you have to say about my weight, or someone else's weight, saying it out loud send's a negative message to me. It puts me in a mini-rage. Okay, not really. But it disappoints and saddens my heart. And I'll tell you why.

To me, it says, "Your outward appearance is of utmost importance." It focuses on vanity.

"Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity,

And revive me in Your ways."

-Psalm 119: 37

Sure, I have gained weight. Would I like to lose weight? Yes. Would I feel more attractive in jeans if I lost 20 pounds? Sure. Do I define my self-worth based on my pants size? No. Do I let my weight, a number, tell me whether I am worthy to be loved? No. Do I want other people to notice me based on my weight loss, weight gain, pant size, or other ridiculous outward insignificance? No.

I think our culture is sick. We are so harsh on ourselves. We as moms have such high expectations put on us by this society. We are expected to work and bring home a paycheck, keep a Better-Homes-and-Garden-worthy house, make Pinterest-worthy crafts with our kids, make gourmet meals to impress the masses, host facebook-brag-worthy holiday parties, all while maintaining a Heidi Klum figure, and being infinitely energetic to be a perfect wife to our husbands.

Did that sentence make you exhausted, too?

Whew.

Ladies, goals are good things to have. If you want to be healthier, wonderful! Be healthy. For you. So that you may have energy to do God's will and God's work! Not to achieve some ridiculous ideal of perfection. Because you are worth so much more than some silly number. You are precious, my friend.

"For it was you who formed my inward parts;

    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

    Wonderful are your works;

that I know very well."

-Psalm 139: 13-14

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Holiday Gift Idea: Snapfish Photo Gifts!

I have been a consistent Snapfish customer for at least 5 years now. I have a collection of personalized photo mugs, and I have a multitude of photo albums, thanks to Snapfish's photo prints. 

Now that Christmas is approaching, I am reminded that I have some hard-to-shop-for members of my family. But now that we have kids, photo gifts are such a neat, personal gift idea for those family members. 

I am in love with the photo ornaments. 

I bet you didn't know you could get photo jewelry at Snapfish!

And to store your beautiful photo jewelry in, how about a beautiful keepsake box?

Snapfish also offers a variety of adorable photo holiday cards...

And for those hard-to-shop-for men in your life? 

You can't go wrong with photo gifts for Grandma and Grandpa, and Aunts and Uncles. 

Don't forget to check out Snapfish's current OFFERS and SALES!

Happy Holiday Shopping, my friends!

I received product/products to review from the sponsor. My thoughts are 100% real and honest. I promise! :)

winners!

Congrats to the latest winners at Mama Days!

I will be emailing you shortly!

More reviews and giveaways coming soon! If you like photo gifts, you might want to stay tuned!