Mama, Don’t Rush Your Babies Growing Up

Do you remember the old song by Willie Nelson called “Mama, don’t let your babies grow up to be cowboys?” In it the song says over and over why they shouldn’t let their babies grow up to be a cowboy. It gives lots of reasons why the cowboy life isn’t a good one and tells mamas to let them be “doctors and lawyers and such”. What I’ve always wanted to scream is mama, don’t let your babies grow up…and then reality hit me, and I realized that no matter what you do they are gonna grow up. So, instead of …

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A little taller, a little older, a little stronger…

The front door opened and closed with a bang. “Hi, Mom,” my ten-year-old called. He was home early because it was a minimum day. I went into the entry hall and gave him a hug. “How was school?” “Good.” He peeled away from me and grabbed his soccer bag from the closet. He pulled his cleats out and started putting them on. “What are you doing?” “I decided I’m reaching my juggling goal today,” he said, matter-of-fact. At the beginning of the soccer season, he set three goals for himself. Juggling the ball twenty times in a row with his feet only (no …

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A Conversation with Gretchen Carlson

Today, The MOM Initiative is honored to have Gretchen Carlson share a little Q & A interview with us! I’ve been a fan of Gretchen’s for quite some time and love how the Lord has used her to demonstrate the principles of faith, hard work, overcoming odds and obstacles, and getting real about real life as a woman, as a wife, as a mom, and as professional business woman. So, without further adéu here is the author of GETTING REAL, Gretchen Carlson! A Conversation with @GretchenCarlson author of #GettingReal at @TheMOMInitiativ Click To Tweet Q: Why did you decide to write GETTING REAL? …

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for the imperfect mom…

  The memories that linger in the shadows of my imperfect mom journey have sometimes caused me to question what I could have and should have done differently. So much! OH…SO MUCH! Motherhood for me was like a messy experiment and my children were the guinea pigs. That’s why I wrote The Making of a Mom with a mission to help moms parent on purpose… to be intentional moms who grasp the significance of the moment… of each moment. Before I was a mom, I thought I would be the kind of mom who never yelled, never counted to three, …

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For the Mom Who Thinks She’s Not Enough

Have you ever felt like you weren’t enough? Have you ever felt insecure as a mom? Like you couldn’t be the mom you thought you would be – the mom you hoped you would become? Like it’s impossible for you to know how to handle every situation or know every answer? Me too! And so has every mom on the planet! We aren’t enough. We weren’t created to be enough. We were created to need the One who is. We weren’t created to be enough. We were created to need the One who is. Click To Tweet I’m not enough. I …

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Hold On Loosely, Don’t Give Up Hope

Moms of teenagers and adult children, oh how I would love to pull up a chair beside you, pour a cup of coffee and commiserate over this new season of parenting you’re in. It’s not an easy transition by any means but I’m hoping that as we sit and visit that you and I both will learn a little bit about how to hold on loosely in this season when you feel like giving up hope. Chances are if you are a child of the 80’s, you’ll remember a song from the band 38 special called, “Hold On Loosely.” In …

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5 Verses Moms Should Memorize…and PRAY!

Salvation. It’s the most important thing we want for our children. The most important prayer our heart whispers every day. The most important cry of every Christian momma’s heart.  More than a godly spouse, educational and financial success, power, position or health, we pray that our children will be saved. But we’re not alone in this deep desire to see our kids come to know Christ. It’s God’s deepest desire too!  That’s why Jesus came… because it wasn’t His will that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance – and that includes your children, and my children, …

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“Nana” Lessons from a Coffee Mug by Kathy Howard (and a GIVEAWAY)

I love coffee mugs. Wait, let me clarify… I love coffee. That makes mugs a necessity. So, I’m always on the lookout for my next favorite coffee container. When I was shopping the other day, I spotted several mugs decorated with my grandmother name – “Nana.” How nice! Not only would any of them make a very adequate holder for my coffee, but everyone would also know the coffee belonged to me. But, I couldn’t purchase all of them. I needed to choose one. So, I began to evaluate the pros and cons of each mug. Did it fit my …

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Prayer Matters by Pam Farrel (and a GIVEAWAY!)

We believe that prayer is the most strategic parenting technique any parent can utilize. We have made a habit of using the words of the Bible to form prayer requests for our kids and, out of curiosity, have kept track of the results. Here is one of the prayers we prayed consistently for our oldest son, Brock: God, give him the faith of a Daniel or a Joseph. Give him the courage to stand alone for You. Give him the integrity and wisdom to choose well in his relationships as you lead him to the godly woman he will marry …

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When You Feel Like a Bad Mom by Sharon Jaynes (and a Giveaway!)

I wanted to climb into the mailbox where I had just dropped in my manuscript and get it out! But I wouldn’t fit. My son was in middle school when I decided to write the book, Being a Great Mom, Raising Great Kids. (The words middle school should give you a heads up that this is not going to be good.) Steven had always been such an easy child to raise. He was compliant, obedient, pleasant, polite, and playful. He’d accepted Christ as Savior, was a good student, and just a joy to be around. Yep. I had done a …

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