Becky Kopitzke Archives - Page 2 of 5

You Are the Queen of Your Castle

My husband and I bought our house before we had kids, so at first our home was our baby. We lovingly stripped wallpaper and painted ceilings, refinished floors and installed new appliances. Then we scrubbed and vacuumed the place corner to corner every weekend. A few years later, I held a toilet brush in one arm and a newborn in the other. Picture my toddler capsizing a laundry basket filled with burp rags and Dora pajamas, jumping in the pile, then spilling milk on the carpet just minutes after I’d scrubbed the stain from the day before. With children at …

No Eat Play-Doh: Obedience Training for Moms

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says” (James 1:22). “Momma, no eat pee-doh!” I stopped fixing my hair and looked down at my toddler standing in the bathroom doorway. A chunk of green Play-Doh sat in the palm of her hand, which she held out toward my face to illustrate her point. “That’s right, sweetheart. We don’t eat Play-Doh.” Wow, after months of hammering home this rule, it had finally sunk in. I was proud and amused at the same time. I’ve read parents need to reinforce a concept up to a …

Why Discipline Is Like Raising Sunflowers

Of all the hats we wear as moms, my least favorite is referee. Some days it seems I have no chance to enjoy my children because all my energy is spent on mediating their squabbles. This was especially true when they were smaller. Here’s a typical scene: “Moooooom! She pinched me!” My older daughter, five years old at the time, accused her little sister of unprompted abuse. “She! Took! My! Bear!” My two-year-old sputtered her defense. “Did you take your sister’s bear?” “No. I had it first!” Sure, that old trick. I knelt to eye-level with my toddler. “Did you …

Did Jesus Have Nicknames?

Lovey. Sweetie. Little Bean. Bubs. I have so many nicknames for my kids, it’s a wonder they answer to their Christian names. Some parents get their children’s official monikers mixed up. I remember my mother tripping over her three choices when she was angry or in a rush. Robin—Becky—Sarah—whatever your name is! Get in here! Me? I even get my girls’ pet names confused. “How’s your breakfast, Sunshine?” “Mooooom!” my eldest scolded. “My sister is your Sunshine. I’m your Joy!” Which begs the question, is it time to ix-nay the nicknames? “For to us a child is born, to us …

The Super Mom Myth: Five Lies You’ve Been Believing about Motherhood

If you’re anything like me, you mess up as a mother all the time. I’m talking daily. And you know what? That doesn’t make us bad moms. It makes us normal. Have you been duped into thinking good moms never make mistakes? Never snap, never get impatient, never need a break or a weeklong vacation to Hawaii? Well, okay, maybe you don’t need a tropical getaway. But I’m guessing you do need somebody to tell you you’re not a bad mom—in spite of all your flaws. Today is your day. Here are five lies you might be believing about motherhood—and …

Is it okay for Christian moms to pursue activities outside the home?

Is it Okay for Christian Moms to Pursue Activities Outside of the Home?

Motherhood can consume us, can’t it? God gave us this job, and He calls us to do it well. Nurturing His children may require the majority of our time and energy, and that’s okay. That’s normal. But it’s not everything. As important as motherhood is, in God’s plan it’s still just a role we play—not the role. “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9). According to scripture, our primary purpose in …

Who Took My Stapler?

Before I had children, I owned possessions. Now I share community supplies. “Who took my stapler?” I yelled upstairs from the basement office, where I’d just spent 60 fruitless seconds searching through desk drawers and under stacks of manila envelopes. “What, Mommy?” My seven-year-old called back from the kitchen. “My stapler,” I said, emerging from the stairs. “Do you know where it is?” “Oh, I borrowed it. I needed it for my craft. I’m writing a book.” Really? I’m writing a book, too. And I need my stapler. “Can I have it back, please?” I glanced behind my daughter at …

When Mom Wears a Dress

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 too shabby. I slipped on the dress, strapped my sandals, and met my family in the kitchen. …

Precious in My Sight

I wasted a year of high school starving myself. Tall is fine when you’re 30-something, but back then my 5-foot 9-inch healthy frame didn’t fit the tiny sophomore cheerleader mold, and I concluded—I must be a big girl. I was a smart girl, too, who should’ve known better. Straight A’s looked great on college applications, but they did nothing to enhance the mirror image. So I did what good overachievers do. I set a goal. My goal was to be skinny—and I chased it with gusto. For breakfast, I rationed exactly half a cup of cereal because the box said …

Four Habits to Teach Kids Good Stewardship

My kids own enough toys to fill a Target aisle. Their clothes closet? Jam packed. Take a quick look around our house and you might think we’re one of those excessive American families with no sense of money’s value. But come a little closer. You’ll discover most of the clothes my children own were handed down from their cousins—or bought on super clearance because Momma loves a bargain. And those toys? Gifts, mostly, or else acquired through our semi-annual Christmas and birthday splurge. We appreciate our material things. But we know they’re not everything. I want to teach my kids …

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