One of my absolute, all-time favorite things to do is plan a party. Oh, I get so excited thinking about the details of a party: the theme, the food, the decorations, the party favors, the outfits…..it can all be so wonderful. But, party planning can also bring out the “Crazy Christen” side too: the panic, the frustration, the sharp tongue (anybody with me?). Here are 10 tips I’ve learned about staying “cool” instead of “crazy” while party planning: 1. Remember the reason for the party. When my girls turned one, all I wanted to do was celebrate their lives …
5 B’s for Being the “Bad Guy” Moms Sometimes Need to Be
A few weeks ago I posted 5 B’s to a Better Day. Today? 5 B’s for the “Being the Bad Guy” moms need to BE! BE the ONE TO SAY “NO” to UNWHOLESOME TV I remember well when at a gathering, all the kids were going to watch a movie. However, when my husband and I found out the movie that had been turned on, we told our kids, NO. Their same aged friends stayed “tuned in.” We were the “bad guys.” Some adults thought we were silly. We’ve never been sorry for being the “bad guy” and saying NO to …
Moms Grow Up, Too
This time of year, my husband treks to the Wisconsin northwoods—to hunt. I can measure motherhood in hunting seasons. Six years ago, on opening bow weekend, I stood at the living room window and waved to my hubby’s truck with tears welling in my eyes. While he climbed trees and relished pink sunrises, I scrubbed bottles and rocked a fussy baby. Hours crept. Conversations were one-sided. I was lonely, frazzled, and desperate for a nap. When little sister blessed our world, I juggled baby food jars and preschool crafts. My then three-year-old missed her dad almost as much as I …
Understanding for unfinished plans
It was my great plan that fizzled out. With one summer left to spend before my sweet girl left home, I chose a book about prayer for the two of us to read together. I would make a deposit in her heart that would bring a return long after she carried her crates to the dorm. But then we went on vacation, she got a job, and I got busy, and somehow, before I knew it, we had to take those crates for college. My good intentions failed, and I was left with a barely read book on prayer. Maybe …
Heavenly Apple Butter
Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered Himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God. -Ephesians 5:2 NLT Stress is stacked higher than pancakes around our kitchen table. Algebra, latin, world history books, blended alongside crayons and nursery rhymes, all hovered by anxious faces. The first few weeks of school are oftentimes the most daunting for the entire family. We hope this recipe will overflow your home with the delightful aroma of fall, comfort all the anxious school tummies, and help mom…relax! How …
Lunchbox Love Notes For Your Kids
It’s that time again. The kids are back in school and with that our mommy calendars immediately start to fill up. New routines. New bed times. New nightly stress about homework and even after school activities. Oh how I love the smell of a freshly sharpened number two pencil (no really, I do) and also dislike all the anxiousness that surrounds the back to school season. Did we get all the supplies on the class lists? Are we going to miss the bus? What about classes, did they get the classes they needed or the teachers we wanted? Breathe in …
When Mom Wears a Dress
“She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come,” (Proverbs 31:25). I slid open my closet door and surveyed the options. Black pants, khaki pants, gray pants, Capri pants. Hmmm… what to wear to church? Shuffling aside a few hangers, I spied a pink summer dress stuffed between a pair of corduroys and an old cardigan. When was the last time I wore you? I spoke silently to the dress. Oh yeah, last year for that wedding shower—banished to my closet ever since, poor thing. I pulled it out and scanned for wrinkles. Not …
How to be a Parent Teachers Love
Teachers hope and pray they’ll get at least one of “those” parents in their classroom. A sensitive, enthusiastic, flexible parent has the potential to make all the difference in a teacher’s year and, as a result, in a child’s year too. Prize parents don’t brown nose in hopes of scoring top grades for their child or the lead role in the Thanksgiving play, but they see themselves as an educator’s resource able to lift a teacher’s load and support their school. You may not find “Awesome Parent” on the teacher’s supply list, but every educator longs to receive the gift …
When You Want What They Have
“Mom, I wish we lived in that house.” Perched inside her playset lookout tower, my daughter cast wistful glances toward the neighbor’s yard a few houses north. “Why? I thought you liked our house.” “Well, they have a pool and a picnic table.” Ah. I see. “But they don’t have a sandbox. Or swings. Or all of your favorite toys inside,” I reasoned. “Just because they have a pool doesn’t mean that house is better. We belong here, in our house.” Wise counsel, O Super Mom. Maybe you should take it yourself. How many times have I wished for someone …
when it is time to rest
It seems that our bodies are made to go on strike even when we don’t want them to. We are too busy, too much is going on for our bodies to sit and say “I’m done. I need rest.” But, against our will to keep going, doing, and being, our bodies declare that it is time to stop. Last week, three hundred kids gathered at my church to attend Vacation Bible School. As the coordinator of our Children’s Ministry, I had been working for months, weeks, and countless hours each day on making our VBS the best experience it could …