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Showing posts from February, 2018

Mom, This Is Soooo Embarrassing!!

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When you hear the word "embarrassed" everyone has some moment that pops into their mind.  For me, I think of being trapped in a Walmart bathroom.  Now, keep in mind that I was only five,  the bathroom was a one-stall bathroom with a bolt lock, and about thirty people were extremely concerned to hear a little girl was trapped in a bathroom.  I didn't want to go to the bathroom alone for the next three years.  But that was nothing compared to my teenage years.  My mother worked a factory job and didn't get off work until around 4 pm.  I had a choice to ride a bus on a route that involved a long dirt road for about an hour or wait for my mom to get off work and pick me up.  I chose being picked up.  My parents didn't have a lot of money, and my dad commuted about an hour each day one way to get to work.  This left my parents buying an old car for her to use.  I remember that I could see the car coming in the distance.  Smoke would rise in the air greater than a sun

In Sickness And In Health...What Real Love is.

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We have survived one of the most high-pressured holidays that exist- Valentine's Day.  In case you don't know what I mean, think about the pressure your significant other is under when every one of your co-workers get flowers, chocolates, stuffed toys, and your desk sits pathetically empty with a few pens and inspirational plaque to comfort you.  Now that significant other must show up big, or they have proven that you are nothing in the great scheme of their existence.  This whole idea is so wrong, but it is what we've formed into the concept of love.  I blame all of the Disney movies and romance novels that convince us that the perfect man will show up in a tux, burst into spontaneous song about the sparkle of your eyes, and lead you through rose petals to the castle he has specially designed for you.  In my fantasy, maid service, chef, and chauffeur would be included.  This, however, is not what love really is.  I can best explain it by telling the story of meeting my

When Your Child is Bullied (Beware the Mama Bear)

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Have you ever had one of those weeks where it seems like the weekend will never get here, and then when it does, you're busier during the weekend than the week.  This was one of those weeks.   Thursday was parent-teacher conferences.  Two hours and multiple teachers later (remember I have four kids and a lot of teachers) I survived.  Friday was senior night for my son's final home basketball game of his life.  I sadly walked him onto the court and watched him play a great game.  I left to bake and decorate a two-tiered wedding cake for a couple being married in our church on Saturday.  Then Saturday, we decorated the church, did the wedding, and then did 6 loads of laundry.  That brings me to today.  While at church, one of the boys who attends our church was upset.  When I came to see what happened, I found out he had been bullied by a teenager.  We talked with the teenager, got an apology, and continued with Sunday School, but this got me thinking.  So I took that moment t

Under Attack? (Showing Grace Under Pressure)

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When it rains, it pours.  Everyone knows that phrase, right?  I've spoken to a lot of people this week that have definitely felt like this saying applies their lives currently.  Today was a typical Sunday morning for my family.  You may have felt this, too.  You snoozed the alarm clock one too many times, and now you are running late.  I felt rushed from the very beginning.  After preparing breakfast, feeding our pets, getting dressed and rushing to the church for worship practice, I could say that I was feeling a little frazzled.  Did I do what a lot of mothers do?  Yes, I pleaded with my children to hurry up, argued with them to stop arguing, and finally hopped in the car and told my children that whoever was ready could go with me and the others could come a little later with their dad.  Once at the church, the road should have been smooth sailing.  Wrong!  We tried to record a Homebound worship session for several of our members that are home sick (we will post that to Facebo