Praying For Your Kids: Simple, Specific, Power-Packed Prayers

For years I had heard it said that we needed to pray for our kids. I get that, and I completely stand behind that thought process. What I didn’t always understand was the beauty and wisdom that came from praying simple, specific, power-packed prayers over my kids. It took a lot of reading, praying and talking with my husband, but over the course of all that investigating we discovered there were some very practical things we wanted to pray for over our boys. It actually fit perfectly with my M.O.M. Mission Statement (see my post in May 2013) and very …

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EXPECTANT Gaining a baby, losing a lover

A Flying Carpet for Two … or More

Last week we heard from awesome dads as we prepared to celebrate Father’s Day. Let’s hear it for the Daddies! Becoming a father brings a pick up truck load of transitions for a man. In about as long as it takes for a season of Duck Dynasty to unfold, a daddy-to-be may  watch helplessly as his lover is stolen away by a fuzzy cheeked bundle who melts his own heart and steals that of his bride. What’s a dad to do? One of the best gifts a mother can give her child is to love her little one’s father well. …

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Icy Pop Fun

Wow! June is already here! Our gift to you today is an easy, fun summer project you can do with the kiddos!  Beat the heat with these easy, inexpensive and oh-so-tasty ice pops! Jello makes these cool treats less drippy. Let us know what you think! Ingredients 1 unsweetened Kool-aid packet,   1 (3 ounce package) fruit flavored Jell-O mix 1 cup white sugar (reduce if needed for taste),   1 cup boiling water 22  paper drinking cups (3 ounce),    22 craft sticks Directions In a large drink pitcher combine jello, Kool-aid, sugar and boiling water. Stir until dissolved. …

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Mom takes a bubble bath

Do I have to say goodbye to bubble baths?

Today I’m sharing an excerpt from my eBook EXPECTANT: 40 Devotions for New and Expectant Moms. EXPECTANT helps a mommy-to-be or a new mom grow her own life while growing a baby. Like this excerpt from the chapter about “Strengthening Your Heart,” transparent stories and biblical truth give new mamas a generous helping of hope and wisdom for the transition into motherhood. What girl doesn’t love a long hot bubble bath? It’s right up there with a pedicure, a latte, and reading on the beach. Read a magazine and drink a latte, while getting a pedicure at the beach, and …

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Mom Mission Statement…and why it’s important to have one

4 “Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone.[a] 5 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. 6 And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. 7 Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Deuteronomy 6:4-7 NLT Mission Statements — Most businesses have them, ministries have them, and so do …

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Mother’s Day and Leukemia

Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia hit the Mayer family full force on September 26th, 2012.  Daniel, the youngest of four boys and only four years old, is in the battle for his life. Submerged under the unrelenting vice of suffering, how does a mom walk this road with her family? Here are some answers from his sweet momma Kelly:  How did Leukemia impact your Mother’s Day? Leukemia really affected Mother’s Day this year but in a fairly roundabout way.  I guess “strain” is the best way to say it.  Leukemia puts a big “strain” on everything and everyone.  Relationships within our family …

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Playdough

Out of playdough? No problem! Here is an easy, fun recipe the kids can help with! Make sure to keep this one handy! 1-cup salt, 2-cups flour, 2-cups water, 1/4-cup vegetable oil, 1-tablespoon cream of tartar Place ingredients in pan, add your favorite food coloring, stir over low heat until dough is  not sticky,  looks and feels like playdough. Enjoy playing with your kids! Isaiah 64:8  But now, O Lord, You are our Father, we are the clay, and You our potter; and all of us are the work of your hand. Enjoy your weekend! Tara Dovenbarger,       …

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5 Ways Twins Can Change Your Life

Some people call me a superhero, doubly blessed. Others say I have my hands full, double trouble. Hi, my name is Christen, and I’m a mother of twins. Before I had children, I had heard rumors that motherhood was the most challenging and rewarding job on the face of the planet. I was the newlywed that thought I could handle the challenge of being a mom; that it couldn’t be that hard. I had illusions that the reward part of motherhood would be more often than the challenge and my children would be well behaved, athletic, musically-talented, smart, and successful …

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EXPECTANT: Growing a life while growing a family

A track-mom friend stood by the fence as we cheered our senior girls across the finish line in their last high school race last night. And then my friend did something I didn’t expect. She reached over and hugged me, smiling with teary eyes. Then I did something I didn’t expect. I had a flashback to bottles and blankets. Swallowing a surprise gulp of my own, I reminded myself that this growing up and moving on thing is good. We don’t have children to keep them forever, but when my husband placed our baby girl in my arms over eighteen …

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Why Moms Should Keep Their Promises

“The godly walk with integrity; blessed are their children who follow them,” (Proverbs 20:7, NLT). I spent fifteen dollars on a snow cone. Crazy, right? Of course this wasn’t just any snow cone. This was a super-sized, rainbow flavored, tantalizing treat scooped into a commemorative Tinkerbell mug. Yes, my husband and I took our girls to the Disney on Ice show, and one glance around the arena told us we weren’t the only parents forking over ridiculous cash for souvenirs. Why? What kind of mother buys a fifteen-dollar snow cone? A good one, I think. Not because good mothers pay …

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