When You Don’t Feel Thankful

Last November, exactly one week before Thanksgiving, my husband and I experienced our fourth miscarriage. That was after months of fertility testing and thinking that this time was going to be different than the previous three pregnancies. Needless to say, I wasn’t very thankful on Thanksgiving.  All I wanted was to hold the baby that was now out of my reach.  I knew I had a lot to be thankful for, but I couldn’t seem to focus on these things. Instead of focusing on the things God had given me, I focused on what had been taken from me. On …

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A Letter to M.O.M.s About Halloween

Dearest M.O.M.S and World Changers, Let me be frank. Jesus was born into our messy world, as it was.  He entered into our story.  He gave us an opportunity for a new heart–forgiveness of sins by His complete work on the cross, shedding His blood once and for all, for ALL. And His work began from the inside of us and overflows to the outside.  I believe we may have gotten this wrong, as believers. We look at the messy, sinful world and we try to begin on the outside–behaviors and appearance– to the inside, hoping that if we make …

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911 or 411 It’s Halloween

911 – that’s the number that many neighbors called when seeing a bloody body on a driveway, crushed by a garage door. Johnnie Mullins from Oklahoma really gets into Halloween. He plans on adding a second body to the Halloween props on his property.  Fun? I guess each person has a different definition of  what is a good time.  So…along with the crispness of fall comes the inevitable spooky holiday. Many Christian parents give at least some thought to how and how much family participation should be had in Halloween. Personally, I’m not a huge Halloween fan. Many of my …

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A teachable change of seasons

Tomorrow is the first day of Autumn. We’ll watch the leaves dry up in the waning sunlight, just to be pinched off their twig by a gust of chilly wind and tossed to the ground with a crunch. Winter will follow, with life lurking beneath what appears to be dead. This is the perfect time to help our children understand the truth of life out of death. God has shown us His redemptive plan through His own creation and the change of seasons. Are you ready to watch the show of color that comes with Autumn? This year, do more …

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Memorial Day Moments with Kids

As the proud daughter of a U.S. Marine, my love of our country is part of my genetic makeup. Yep, that’s me over there. Dad thought it made perfect sense to stuff my little self into his helmet. His patriotism rubbed off. Play the national anthem and I sing at the top of my lungs, see a mother with a “My son is a Marine/Soldier/Sailor ” bumper sticker on her car or a person out and about in uniform and I walk up and thank them. Yeah, I’m that lady. My husband is the same way. Just last week I …

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Great Easter Activities

Colorful eggs. Tons of fabulous candy. And a giant bunny. A cross. Palm branches. And an empty tomb. As a child holidays can be quite confusing. As a mom it can be difficult to know how to teach your children about Easter. Below are some ideas to help your kids understand what Easter is all about. Resurrection rolls are a fun, tasty, educational, and relatively quick Easter breakfast recipe. My children love making them. One note to this recipe, I buy the large sized crescent rolls to keep the marshmallow inside the roll better. Resurrection Cookies. This recipe begins the …

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Rethinking Valentine’s Day

I have an issue with Valentine’s Day. As I grew up my parents gave my siblings and I candy and told us they loved us. At school I got candy and those little cards that get thrown away almost as soon as you get home. I gave them too. As I got older, I secretly wished a certain boy would send me a card that shared secret feelings. I hoped and wished, always to be disappointed. Even if I received a card from a certain boy that said something like “Be Mine” I could never be sure if he really wanted …

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Fun Indoor February Activities for Kids and Moms

It is February and for most of us it is still cold outside. What do we do to keep our kids from going crazy? Here are some fun February activities to keep your kids from suffering boredom.   Did you know February is Canned Food Month? Host a canned food drive for your neighborhood, church, school, or just your family. Have your kids help you bring the cans to a food pantry.   February is Snack Food Month             Are you still trying to keep your New Years resolution to eat healthier? Check out this yummy and healthy snack that …

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A Christmas Gift for Daddy

It’s too late.  If you haven’t finished Christmas shopping for your husband, your time is up. Oh, you could fight the crowds, pray for a parking spot, wait in line, and buy him … a bag of jerky, but that’s not really what he wants. On Christmas day, a mom can give her main man what he wants most:  her respect. Christmas can become so focused on the children that a dad can feel like a toy dancing Santa … fun at first, but then only good to be put in a corner and ignored. Add in some holiday-inspired sarcasm …

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He Came!

I grieve when I fail the Lord, when my obedience lacks its first response. But then I remember it was for failures that Christ graced a rough-hewn manger. It was for failures that He breathed His last earthly breath as He hung in disgrace for the failings of the world. It was to a failure, one who penned the precious psalms that touch our hearts in time of need and, yet, as a man after God’s own heart, sinned and ripped apart his fellowship with the Lord, then repented and repaired it. It was to a failure, one who had …

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