Ready or not, the holidays are upon us! What are your favorite holiday traditions? What are the ones you could leave behind? 



Get sidetracked with Cynthia and me as we discuss everything from trees (real, fake, and Jesse) to gift giving philosophies (more or less presents than Jesus?) to elves and shepherds and the awful name your pie might get if it doesn’t come out just right. There’s even help for the mom who just wants to help her kids see Jesus in the midst of all the holiday stuff!   



Connect with Cynthia Yanof: 






Website:  https://cynthiayanof.com/ 
Podcast: Messmerized

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cynthia.yanof 
Instagram:  @cynthiayanof 

Links Mentioned:  






The Jesse Tree
Heather’s  Mother-in-law’s Wassail Recipe→ combine in a pot: a gallon of apple cider (or juice) with 12 whole cloves, 4 tsp whole allspice, 12 sticks of cinnamon. (optional: 2 cups of sugar, 1 cup orange juice, 6 Tbsp lemon juice). Bring to a slow boil and then simmer for 10 minutes. Strain and serve hot. 
Pioneer Woman Cinnamon Rolls Recipe 
Pioneer Woman Chocolate Marshmallow Pumpkin Pie 
Courtney DeFeo’s Light ‘Em Up 
Cultivate What Matters Powersheets 
Christmas Eve Service Printable 
Come, Let Us Adore Him: A Daily Advent Devotional by Paul David Tripp
“Pilgrim Rick” Season 1 Episode 8 of This Is Us

Related Episodes:






Truth in the Tinsel with Amanda White (Ohamanda) :: [Ep 3] 
Celebrating Advent :: Tsh Oxenreider [Ep 305]
Christmas Traditions with Little Ones :: Jacki Rucksdashel [Ep 142] 

Featured Sponsors: 





Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors. 

Sidetracked with the Holidays :: Pie-arrhea, Dutch Cabbage Patch Dolls and Advent Fails :: Cynthia and Heather [Ep 442]

Heather MacFadyen, mother of four boys, connects you the listener with people and resources to help you feel less alone. Consider it an invitation to "withness".

Kids & Family

Parenting

Do you often feel like you are dropping all the spinning plates? That you can’t keep up or believe the lie that you are the worst mom and wife? Do you wonder why you are not further along, why does everyone else seem to have it together? 



Today Joanna Weaver- author, speaker, and podcaster- joins me to discuss her new book Embracing Trust. We also spent time talking about her classic Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World and how that message has stayed applicable through the years. We want to worship at the feet of Jesus like Mary but the Martha in us keeps bossing us around, telling us to work harder and strive more. Joanna reminds us that if we tend our connection with the Lord everything else flows out of that place. The tasks and needs do not disappear but the ability to tackle them with grace, tranquility, and truth increases as we spend time at the feet of Jesus.  



Connect with Joanna Weaver: 

Website:  Christian Author and Speaker - Joanna Weaver

Facebook: Joanna Weaver Books

Instagram:  Joanna Weaver | Christian Author (@joannaweaverbooks)


Links Mentioned:  

Podcast - Joanna Weaver
Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World: by Joanna Weaver
Embracing Trust: by Joanna Weaver
Don't Mom Alone: by Heather MacFadyen

 Related Episodes:






The What, Why and Work-through of Panic Attacks :: Kasey Van Norman [Ep 452]
Inner Healing Prayer :: Jennifer Barnett [Ep 323]
Set Free From Shame :: Jeannie Cunnion [Ep 190]
Exchange False Beliefs with True Identity :: Jamie Winship [Ep 433]




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Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors. 









When You're Busy and Stressed by Mom Life Expectations :: Joanna Weaver [Ep 463]

Do you feel like you just need more money to create a home you love? Do you want an inviting home that feels peaceful and open to your friends and family? Are you confused about your decorating style and end up buying random decor that does not work? 



Myquillyn Smith, author and founder of the Nesting Place, joins me to help with all of the House Rules that can be so overwhelming. She gives me advice on how to update my kitchen on a limited budget by utilizing Pinterest. Plus gives advice on everything from throw pillows, lamps, wallpaper, and buying new couches. Myquillyn says that decorating is taking the time to learn about yourself and what you need for your home. Building the confidence to make big and small decisions that lead to a home you love and is functional. She reminds us that it does not have to be perfect to be beautiful. 



One powerful statement from Myquillyn is to not wait to get started, get started today on creating a home you love. One that you, your family, and your friends can be invited into a place of peace and rest. 



Connect with Myquillyn Smith: 

Website:  Nesting Place

Facebook: Nesting Place

Instagram:  Myquillyn Smith (@thenester)





Links Mentioned:  






House Rules: How to Decorate for Every Home, Style, and Budget by Myquillyn Smith
The Cozy Minimalist Community
Jason Saft | Staged To Sell Home (@stagedtosellhome)
The Nesting Place: It Doesn't Have to Be Perfect to Be Beautiful: by Myquillyn Smith
Quiz: What's Your Decorating Era?



Related Episodes:

How to Quit Hustle and Embrace Small-Moment Living :: Emily Freeman {Ep 83}
Create a Home of Belonging and Becoming :: Sally Clarkson {Ep 107}
Your Unique Color Palette and Authentic Style :: Karen Blanc [Ep 343]




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Skylight - Get 15% off a Skylight Calendar at SkylightCal.com/ALONE


StoryWorth - Save $10 on your first purchase when you go to StoryWorth.com/DMA 

Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors. 


House Rules and Learning to Love your Home :: Myquillyn Smith [Ep 462]

Do you feel as if you are always measuring yourself as a mom? Do you feel like the pressure to keep up with moms around you is overwhelming? Do you feel snappy or resentful at your kids and husband?



Today, author Sara Hagerty joins me to talk about her new book, The Gift Of Limitations. She is a wife and mom of seven with four adopted kids. Sara shares how we often find ourselves daydreaming about other seasons and how to recognize our limits and give ourselves grace without shame and complaining. When we name our limits we can actually grieve them and let God give us the story He is intricately weaving for our families. Society tells us we can be limitless, we can optimize everything, but Sara reminds us that the limits and plot twists in our life are all from a good Father who is at work in our stories. 



Connect with Sara Hagerty: 






Website:   Sara Hagerty

Facebook: Sara Hagerty

Instagram:  Sara Hagerty (@sarahagertywrites)


Links Mentioned:  






The Gift of Limitations: Finding Beauty in Your Boundaries: by Sara Hagerty
Every Bitter Thing Is Sweet: Tasting the Goodness of God in All Things: by Sara Hagerty
Unseen: The Gift of Being Hidden in a World That Loves to Be Noticed: by Sara Hagerty

Related Episodes:






When You Feel Unseen :: Sara Hagerty [Ep 175]
Every Bitter Thing is Sweet :: Sara Hagerty [Ep 143]
Help When You Feel Weak :: Lisa Whittle [Ep 170]




Featured Sponsors: 






BetterHelp: This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/DMA and get on your way to being your best self.”
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When You’re Disappointed in Mom Life Limitations :: Sara Hagerty [Ep 461]

Right off the bat Cynthia and I get sidetracked by my grumpy mood. A mood I blamed on an instagram battle but probably more about my grief of having a senior who is actually going to college! 



There’s some rehashing of the Bachelor, Heather’s advice for renting with Turo and discussion whether audiobooks count as reading. We also get sidetracked talking about all of the end-of-school year emotions including Cynthia's current struggle over her first grader’s learning and reading challenges. She claims her stage of life is somewhere between Kidzbop music and shapewear from Soma. Which makes us wonder how would you describe your current parenting stage? 



Regardless of which end of the spectrum you are on (or maybe you are in both seasons) this episode will give you encouragement that God cares for our kids more than we ever will and He has a good story for their lives. 



Connect with Cynthia Yanof: 

Website:   https://cynthiayanof.com/ 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cynthia.yanof 
Instagram:  @cynthiayanof 
Podcast: MESSmerized 




Links Mentioned:  






Turo car rental marketplace
Watch Mean Girls
Chico's
Soma
Heather’s new Cupshe bathing suit
Amazon.com: Audible Books
The Women: by Kristin Hannah
Confessions of a Shopaholic: by Sophie Kinsella
Me before You by Jojo Moyes 
Don't Mom Alone: by Heather MacFadyen
Life Is Messy, God Is Good: by Cynthia Yanof
Cynthia’s MESSmerized Patreon
Heather’s Don't Mom Alone Patreon

 Related Episodes:






Emotional Maturity, Teamwork, and 25 years of Marriage :: Bruce and Heather [Ep 458]
Build Lasting Faith in Your Kids :: Dr. Kara Powell [Ep 290]
How to Stay Calm with School Stress :: Kirk Martin {Ep 88}

Featured Sponsors: 







Thrive Causemetics- get an exclusive 20% off your first order at thrivecausemetics.com/DMA

Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors. 


Sidetracked by Instagram Arguments, Chicos, and End-of-School Year Emotions  :: Cynthia and Heather [Ep 460]


Earbud and Trigger warning

We live on the other side of the Resurrection! If you find yourself in the middle of brokenness and ruin, we pray this episode reminds you that your heavenly Father God is in the redemption business. 



Today Nadia Louise joins me to share her powerful testimony. Her story is woven with so many layers of trauma and pain from a narcissistic, abusive father to the death of her brother when she was just 17 years old. That event was the catalyst that allowed Nadia to hear the voice of the Lord. But her story was not over; she still walked through pain, suffering, more death, and heartbreak. As she learned to sit at the feet of Jesus and hear His voice she began to heal from depression, self-harm, and her past. 



Listen in to Nadia’s powerful story and know that God still heals, still redeems, and still works today. 



Connect with Nadia Louise: 






YouTube: Nadia Louise (youtube.com)

Instagram:  nadia louise (@itsnadialouise)





Links Mentioned:  







Dancing on the Grave–Naomi Cantwell and Christ for the Nations 
Kiddell (@ohkiddell)
Upperroom (uprmdallas.org)




Related Episodes:






Forgiving What You Can’t Forget :: Lysa TerKeurst [Ep 304]
Faith in the Unexpected :: Christine Caine
You Are Never Alone :: Max Lucado [Ep 298]
Life Giving Faith in Every Circumstance :: Lisa Appelo [SofM wk 2]




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Vegamour- For a limited time get twenty percent off your first subscription order at VEGAMOUR.com/DMA

Find links to this week’s sponsors and unique promo codes at dontmomalone.com/sponsors. 


Sidetracked with the Holidays :: Pie-arrhea, Dutch Cabbage Patch Dolls and Advent Fails :: Cynthia and Heather [Ep 442]

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