Encouraging Topic for January's get together!

Encouraging Topic for January's Get together

Exposing the mythical Super Mom 

What are your expectations for yourself as a mother? Are they realistic? Are they achievable? Are they the most important things?  So often we think we have to be Super Mom.  We set unrealistic goals for ourselves and then beat ourselves up when we fail.  Someone close to me recently said something that has stuck in my head.  She said, " If Satan can get you to beat yourself up, well, then he has to do nothing."  I am not saying we shouldn't set high goals for ourselves, we should.  We should however check ourselves to make sure our Goals in mothering are truly the important things and not just the things that make us look good. 

What can sometimes end up happening is that we are juggling all these plates in the air trying to be the "Perfect Mom" (which does not exist) and we are unable to do it all and maintain the loving nurturing heart we are suppose to have for our children.  I know I have struggled with this at times so I know I must not be the only one.  We can do everything right and appear as the Super Mom, but all our kids may remember is our bad attitude, our yelling and our frustration. 

I don't want to set wrong standards and end up constantly feeling defeated, overwhelmed and like a failure.  How can we have a good balance? is there a set of guidelines that we can look to in God's Word? What are the most important things in motherhood? What can we do to encourage each other as we try to be the best moms for our children?  How can we get everything done we need to do and still do it with LOVE.  These are the struggles of all Mothers.  Join us for encouragement as we explore this topic!

Love,
Shannon & Julie

Practical Topic for January 31st Mom's Group

 "Bringing Peace to the Mommy Wars"

As soon as you saw the "+" or the "PREGNANT" on that pregnancy test, you knew you were part of something amazing!  You probably felt this kindred spirit to other Moms when you saw them.  It was all brand new and so exciting to be part of this "sisterhood"! All us Moms, working together, going through the same stuff.

But, it probably didn't take too long to realize all the underlying differences and opinions on motherhood.  How we as moms handle these differences will inevitably determine our relationships with each other.  

Come join us for discussion on how to handle unsolicited Mommy advice.   It IS possible for us to gently share our thoughts and opinions while preserving and building friendships.  Come and be encouraged by other Moms, going through the same things, just doing it a little differently.  let's Bring  PEACE to these ridiculous Mommy Wars!

January 31, 2015 get together

The next moms group get together is on the calendar for January 31, 2015.  Save the date and we will be posting more info soon! We hope you can join us for some food, friendship, and encouragement!

MOMS GROUP GET TOGETHER FOR OCTOBER

I sit here at midnight typing.  I was done with this day about 3 hours ago after the boys got out of bed for the fifth time,  after Lizzy the hamster who escaped and was trapped in the wall all day decided to come out of hiding, after my six year olds birthday party..... buuuuuut for some reason I am still awake.  It was quite an eventful day today, an escaped hamster, a birthday party, yes, that definitely qualifies for an eventful day in my life! Lol! 

I hope everybody has a great summer and has eased back into the school year smoothly!  We have had a lot of transitions this fall! The boys are doing football and Sam is Cheerleading so that has kept us busy! This is the first year all three are doing something and this is our first year with the Junior Comets.  So far so good.  On top of that, my oldest just entered his first year of middle school! Lockers, changing classes, new school.  I swear we spent a ridiculous amount of time just trying to open his darn locker!!!  Samantha entered kindergarten this year and is being forced to detach herself from me. ( or maybe its the other way around ) I am doing ok, it was a rough first week, MY BABAAAYYYYYYYY WHAHHH!!!!!  I'm fine, really (insert ugly cry face). She is riding the bus by herself and doing good, as long as she hugs and kisses me five extra times at the last minute (sob)!!  She is still adjusting to the new routine and has been napping more and has been a ridiculous whiney bratty tired mess half the time when she's not napping! Driving me out of my darn mind

On that note....

Who's ready for our next mom's get together??????

The date is set....Friday, October 17th  @   6:30 pm 
It will be held at my house.  Message me for directions.  We are going to do something a little different this month.  From 6:30-7:30 we are going to do our topics and talk and eat as usual, then at 7:30 we will be having a "Mom's Night Out" movie night!  Yes, that is the title of the movie aaaaad the night! I saw it this past weekend and thought it would be a great way to start off the season!  It is really funny and is basically the story of our lives as moms.  I am thinking we will have a dress code of PJ's and sweats for the night, bring your snuggly and slippers if you want too! I will probably have mine!!!  If everyone could bring a appetizer or a dessert that would be great, and also rsvp to the facebook event as soon as you know if you can come so we can get a good count. Feel free to add moms as well.  

Looking forward to catching up with everybody!!! Hope you can come!! Julie and I will post our topics soon!

Love,
Shannon

A LIFE OF SACRIFICE..... Moms Group topics for MAY 30Th!

Encouraging Topic and Practical Topic are together this month......

                                                          

  A LIFE OF SACRIFICE

 

  The life of a mother is a life of sacrifice! 

We have all been there, as mothers we make sacrifices daily that go seemingly unnoticed and unappreciated! Even our older children who CAN understand what we do for them often don't appreciate it!

We are prone to facing bitterness, anger, frustration, hopelessness, despair, depression amongst other things.

 How can we mother our children with love in the midst of our endless sacrifice and often seemingly ungrateful children.  How can we sacrifice with an outlook that doesnt leave us depressed and in despair but happy?! Is that possible?

Hope to see you tomorrow night for some food, friendship, and much needed refreshing encouragement!!

Love,
Shannon and Julie  

Coming out of Hibernation in the ROC!

Hey Momma's!! Happy Mothers Day!!!  It has been a crazy couple of months over here and I am sorry we have had to put off our moms night the past two months.  I know many of you have been asking.  Soooo the next one has been scheduled for Friday May 30th.  I know a lot of you prefer Saturdays but it just wasn't possible.  I just returned from a refreshing weekend in Vegas where I am happy too say I enjoyed laying by the pool soaking in the sun with a strawberry daiquiri  in hand a little too much! lol! Now that I'm back,  I am  running all three kids to their spring sports and Friday night is the only night we don't have something going on.  I have two in soccer this year and one in baseball!! As well as gymnastics and Jiu-Jitsu sat am!! AHHHHHH!!!! LOL!!!  My brain is going to explode trying to keep this all strait.  I am sure to show up with the wrong kid at the wrong place in the wrong clothes at least once I'm sure!

 I hope you are all doing well and enjoying the sunshine as you come out of Roc's hibernation!!! It has sure been a long awful winter!  I know I was starting to go out of my mind for SURE!  Especially after we had those two beautiful days..... and then it SNOWED!!! whahhhhhh!!!! 

I was feeling especially mopey not too long ago... you know those days,  no sunshine, probably vitamin D deficient as a result which can leave you feeling depressed enough without the fact that your cooped up in the house with children, isolated from most of the world and spending your days doing endless laundry and dishes! then lets just add some PMS ontop of that and a kitchen that is a complete unorganized disaster with no doors cuz your remodeling.  And yes I wanted you to read that all in one long spewed out sentence for effect. ;)

So, I was feeling this way and thinking who am I to encourage moms, to run a moms group? I am a freaking mess half the time!!! Lol!!! Well that same day, just in the everyday things I was doing, I met a mom.  I made a connection with a single mom that was visiting our church and just in a few kind words over our boys being the same age I made a small difference and made her feel welcome her first time visiting.  I felt like God whispered in my ear on the way home, "See, you don't have to have it all together to serve me and make a difference, you just have to be willing"   It reminded me of a verse, 2 Corinthians 12:9 , "My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness"  When we are "weak" realizing we can't do it all on our own, we are forced to depend on God and his strength and in that we are strong.   

So Moral of the story...... as we all come out of our winter hibernation be looking for that new mom with the crazed look in her eyes that has been cooped up all winter with a nursing, crying, pooping, stole my body newborn, or maybe that is you? If THAT is YOUUUU, look for the mom with the older kids pulling her in five different directions at once, buried in sports equipment, breaking up sibling fights, constantly stocking up on snacks for the every growing, eating you out of house and home boys! you need eachother! you can encourage eachother! We have the hardest Job and we often feel isolated but that is far from the truth! Open up to someone, risk looking like a crazy interaction deprived mother and maybe you will have the opportunity to encourage another mom and be encouraged yourself! :)

On that note, I hope to see you all on MAY 30th!!! I hope you all have a great mother's day!!! and I will leave you with some mom humor! 

Love,
Shannon

Encouraging Topic for Feb 8th!

 Mom Friendships

Every mom is in a different place in her role as a parent.  Some moms are just starting out with their first baby.  Other moms are juggling pre-teens and kids that are in school.  

Every Mother has a different story, a different set of children they are raising, a different parenting style, a different age group they are focused on and a different outlook on life. 

 

 How can we as moms encourage each other and not judge each other? How can we be friends with mothers who are in a different place in their mothering journey than us?  Is it possible?  Arrogance over the thought that your way of parenting is the best way only separates and isolates.

 

While it may be true that your way is the best way for you and your children, all children and all parents are different.  God did not make us perfect as mothers, but he did make us the perfect mothers for OUR kids.  Mothering is hard and we are going to be focusing on how we can strengthen our friendships with other moms and learn to be encouraging to eachother!

Looking forward to seeing you all!
Love,
Shannon