Mother's Day The History, Purpose, and Regional Dates Uncommon Gift Ideas Really uncommon gift ideas: support a Mom through one of these organizations (or one that you know of), blood:water , Compassion , Samaritan's Purse , Helping Hands for Single Moms , Microfinance for Women . Why do microfinance programs target women?  Stay Up All Night Night Psh.  I can barely make it to 10 pm! World Lupus Day What is Lupus? Fast Facts About Lupus Healthy Eating Tips for People with Lupus Windmill Day What is a windmill and its purpose? The History of Windmills Clean Up Your Room Day A How To Clean Your Room with Pictures Generally kids only have one room, their bedroom, but if they have a playroom or a homeschool classroom/area then today is a great day to tackle that as well! Adults, consider your cubicle (if you have one) as one of your rooms and take today to clean it up also. 15 minute bedroom clean up

Today I was grateful for my Mama's instinct. You Mom's know what I'm talking about. That "thing" inside of you that sounds like a warning bell or waves like a red flag and alerts you to something about your child. Well my bell rang and the flag waved about a month ago while watching of all things an infomercial on some shoe inserts.  (Don't ask me why we were watching this infomercial but somehow the hub landed on it while flipping through channels and we just stayed there!)  This infomercial made me take heed to the "thing" in me that said I needed to get my youngest redhead's feet checked.  So I heeded and today we went to the Pediatric Orthopedic Doc.  And I am so grateful we did. I am so grateful for that instinct I had because it turns out she does need so correction and had I not brought her in now and we waited "x" number of years she would have knee pain and probably need knee replacements!  But since I heeded the Mama's ins...

I don't remember who said this, but there really are places in the heart you don't even know exist until you love a child.   Anne Lamott Motherhood has been one of the biggest surprises in my life.  It may even trump the surprises of marriage.  Every year I say it has been the hardest or most challenging or most scary or most unnerving.   Every year I say that!  In the midst of mothering I lose sight of the rewards, a lot of days there doesn't feel like there are many.  Perhaps there aren't.  Perhaps the rewards are when the children are grown and out of the house and you have your distance from mothering them so intently and you can see what and who they have become, some as a direct result of your mothering.  Every so often I am reminded of the rewards in the here and now.  When I get an unexpected hug or kiss, when I get an understanding look on the days I am in tears for inexplicable reasons, when some stranger to our family...

When you find yourself locked in the bathroom, sobbing on the floor because you've just had enough, that does not mean you have failed as a mother.  Being a mother is hard.  That is not failure. That is fact.  Remind yourself of that.   Unknown Can I get a witness?  If you are a Mom you may have found yourself in a similar position at some point.  I know I have.  Usually I'm not curled up on the bathroom floor (I have issues with that) but usually I am curled up figuratively and I am sobbing at the most inopportune times.  Like in front of people, while driving, in the shower (the best place as far as I'm concerned), in the middle of a sentence, etc.  You get the picture and maybe you have your own inopportune time story. Sometimes the fear I get from parenting in today's world threatens to completely overtake me.  It's tough and I'm not sure I have the energy for it.  Scratch that.  I'm not sure I have the confid...