Practically Joyful Mom

Have you ever felt like a failure as a mom? Ever felt like all the moms around you have it more figured out than you? It’s easy to lack confidence as moms partly because we put pressure on ourselves to be at the end of our motherhood journey where we’ve already learned all the lessons even when we’re just starting out. Motherhood is a journey and we can have more confidence when we remember that growth, not perfection, is our goal. The journey of motherhood can also feel exhausting when we try to do it alone. But you aren’t alone. There are moms all around you who are in the trenches with you and moms who have gone ahead of you who have learned the lessons you are learning now and are willing to share their wisdom. Most importantly of all, you’re not alone because you can call on the God who created the universe to give you wisdom and rest in the midst of your motherhood journey.

Have you ever felt like a failure as a mom? Ever felt like all the moms around you have it more figured out than you? It’s easy to lack confidence as moms partly because we put pressure on ourselves to be at the end of our motherhood journey where we’ve already learned all the lessons even when we’re just starting out. Motherhood is a journey and we can have more confidence when we remember that growth, not perfection, is our goal. The journey of motherhood can also feel exhausting when we try to do it alone. But you aren’t alone. There are moms all around you who are in the trenches with you and moms who have gone ahead of you who have learned the lessons you are learning now and are willing to share their wisdom. Most importantly of all, you’re not alone because you can call on the God who created the universe to give you wisdom and rest in the midst of your motherhood journey.

Do you ever feel crushed under the weight of a to-do list a mile long? Or feel discouraged by all the areas in life you want to grow in? The feeling of overwhelm can leave us feeling powerless and unable to do anything. But today I'm talking about one perspective shift and strategy that has helped me to move forward even in the midst of feeling overwhelmed. 

Do you ever feel like you spend a huge part of your day just getting your kids occupied so you can accomplish "adulting" tasks? When you are with your kids, is your to-do list constantly running through your mind? Listen to today's episode for some inspiration to shift your perspective and practical ideas to spend more time enjoying your kids and still get done what needs done. 

When we are tempted to "I told you so" our kids, it can be so powerful to instead take a step a back and give them our sympathy. I recently had an exchange with one of my kids where giving them my sympathy had such a deeper impact than any lecture or "I told you so" could have. 

We've all had those days where it seems like everything is going downhill, including our own attitudes. But whether it's 7:00am and it's already been a long day or it's almost bedtime and you're counting the minutes, it's not too late to turn the day around. Today's episode is full of perspective shifts and practical ideas for redeeming a difficult day. 

We all face rainstorms in life, both physical rain and just challenging seasons. How we approach these rainstorms matters deeply. Are you embracing your rainstorms and choosing to see them as times to adventure and splash in the puddles, to grow in character and endurance? Or are you just miserably waiting for the rain to stop? 

One of the common struggles of parenthood is those phases when our kids seem to really be struggling with listening to what we ask them to do. There are often many factors at play in these situations but today we will be discussing one powerful tool for helping out kids actually WANT to listen to us. 

Fun is like currency with our kids. When we invest in fun times with them they feel closer to us and are more likely to listen to what we have to say about important issues. It can seem overwhelming to plan fun with our kids if we feel pressured to make it elaborate or Pinterest perfect. But having fun with our little can be much simpler and easier than we think and at the same time incredibly rewarding. 

How often do we tell our kids to “have fun” when we drop them off to school or anywhere else? While fun is a wonderful part of life, it’s not necessarily our highest goal in life. In today’s episode we’ll discuss some simple tweaks in how we talk to our kids to communicate our family’s values and help them view their days through a different lens.