My Weekend Away

Two weekends ago I attended a 2-day conference for mothers called Mom Heart, which is a ministry started by Sally Clarkson. Avery spent her first night away from Mama and hardly noticed I was gone. She ran errands and enjoyed a date with her Daddy to Corner Bakery for french toast. I came home with many things to ponder, so I'll share a few.

1. Our children are OUR responsibility.
It may seem like a common sense statement, but I realized that we rely on many others to guide & influence our children. Daycare providers, Sunday school teachers, school teachers, educational DVD's, even other children and grandparents. If God has blessed us with children, we are responsible for every bit of their development, behavior and life.

2. There is a biblical design for motherhood and marriage.
I felt encouraged in my role as a stay-at-home mom. Our culture is confused about motherhood. We have been told that we can have it all. A career, marriage, children, social life, etc.....but women only stretch so far. You can't have it all and do it all well. I am blessed to have a husband who supports us financially and doesn't complain (too much) when he hasn't had a haircut in a REALLY long time because his pregnant wife budgeted poorly last month.

3. "In the absence of Biblical conviction - we will go the way of the culture."
This is a quote from Sally Clarkson and it gave me MUCH to ponder. I considered all the many areas of my life affected by cultural norms and I wasn't pleased. Listening to God and studying scripture is the only way to stay on track. I decided that if everybody thinks we're "normal," then we're doing something wrong.

"The people dancing were thought to be fools by the people who could not hear the music."

Psalm 118:24

I highly recommend reading Sally Clarkson's books and/or attending her conference next year here in Dallas. It was so nice to be around mothers with goals, sleep in a fancy hotel and leave feeling encouraged.

Her book, Mission of Motherhood, is the best mothering book I've ever read and I want every mother who reads my blog to read it. BUY IT! And if you can't afford it, leave a comment here, on Facebook or email me and I will make sure you get a copy. I'm serious.

In other news, Avery loves her Daddy..

..and this boy beebs is getting big!

(23 Weeks)

I had a prenatal appointment yesterday and all is well, I even gained 5 pounds! I usually lose 10-12 pounds in the first trimester, so I have to gain or get in trouble. He continues to be active and flip around.....sometimes sideways, head down, feet down. He still has some time to flip around before his Mama has a stern conversation with him about the importance of being head down for his birth!