Mom of the Month: February

Mom of the Month: February

Lili Leiva

Who is in your family?

My husband Leo and me, Lili Leiva. We were both LL's so we thought we'd keep it going…We have Linelle (8), Lileahna (5), Landez (3), little Leo (20 months).

Do you have a favorite event in the winter olympics?

I'm so bad…I haven't watched the olympics at all! But, my favorite is figure skating with the couples- so romantic!

What is the nicest thing someone has ever done for you?

Once we had an older neighbor that would mow our lawn…all the time. When I had the baby, he delivered a package of goodies for us… it would have popsicles, fruits, juice, and frozen dinners. This went on for about 3 months. Let's just say we miss him very much!

To what would you like to devote more time?

I would like to devote more time to my husband. Between Bible study, MOPS, kids' school, gym, cooking, housework…list goes on and on…at times he gets the leftovers of me at the end of the day…which is not fair for him. I would like to actually go every month to date my husband…this task is easier said than done!

What advice or encouragement can you offer to the moms in our group?

My advice for young moms is to take the time and enjoy your family. Making memories is priceless and they will be gone before you know it. Housework will always be around but not our kids.

Kiddo Connection

There are a million things moms can debate about, and everyone's entitled to their own opinions.  But I think it's safe to say we can all agree on one thing... Parenting is a tough gig.  And if you're anything like me, and your kids are anything like mine, you may have found yourself staring at them and wondering where your sweet cherubs have gone.

I often find myself in that awkward space where I'm spending great quantities of time with my children, but the quality isn't there.  It's easy for me to make excuses like "I have mountains of laundry to fold," or "I just don't know how to relate to boys."  But the truth is that we're all longing to feel loved by one another, and when I let the busy-ness of life take precedence over being present with my children, our connection with each other suffers.

Live @ MomCon2013 

This week, the amaaaaaazing Kathi Lipp gave us (via video) some really great tips for connecting with our kids.  She encouraged us to pray for our kids and with them, and to pray for ourselves as we navigate through the daily grind.  (The latter is something I often forget to do!)  And ya know those times when life gets off-the-charts crazy?  Her biggest sanity-saving suggestion was to keep up with simple routines (bedtime rituals, etc.).  It restores a little normalcy and comfort for your kiddos during times when they may feel a little lost in the mix.

The biggest take-away for me was Kathi's challenge to reframe our own attitudes about our kids personalities.  "Bossy kids will grow into great leaders, and quiet kids will turn into thoughtful adults who really care about people," she explained.  We're with our children so often that we tend to gloss over many of their positive attributes because their more challenging personality traits need more attention.  But if we put forth the effort to really understand our kids' personalities and love languages, we'll be able to show our love more effectively, and better understand how they show their love for us.

The Five Love Languages of Children is a great resource, and so is the link Kathi provided to take a little personality quiz.  (Click HERE to take the quiz.)  I answered the questions with my oldest son in mind, and it was 100% spot-on (He is equal parts "expressive" and "driver" in case you were wondering) and it has awesome suggestions for how to support his particular tendencies.

Just going through the motions isn't good enough if I want to have a close, loving connection with my boys.  Kathi's message was a much-needed reminder for me that with a little observation, and a lot of prayer, I can be intentional in my parenting and our whole family will reap the benefits.

To learn more about Kathi Lipp, check out her website, follow her on Facebook and Twitter, and be sure to sign up to receive her email newsletter!

It Works For Me - Emilee's Table - January

"IT WORKS FOR ME" - JANUARY (Emilee's Table)

Nancy - To avoid bickering, let kids pick breakfast and lunch from list of options, also let kids take turns picking out movies.

Becky - To save time and sanity, no longer sort and fold socks. Put in child's room and they can choose to wear mismatched socks, or match them up themselves.

Melody - Has kids help unload dishwasher.

Dana - Has a tea party with 2 year old in order to get her to drink water.

Emilee - No whining rule in house. When child starts to whine, lead child out into garage and tell them "We don't whine in this house" tell them they can come back in when they stop whining.

Thank you ladies for sharing your tips & tricks!

Hi ladies,
Sorry for the delay on this month's "It Works For Me" post. Somehow it slipped my mind after last meeting that I needed to write this post :)

Cyndi

Choose Your Own Meeting Rocked My Face Off

This morning I donned my stretchy pants and headed to MOPS. Not because I was planning on pigging out on a fabulous breakfast (although I always look forward to my bi-monthly donut), but because today was yoga with Soma.

Yoga? At MOPS? What is happening? My husband also seemed confused when I told him why I was wearing something akin to what my daughter would wear to Pajama Day at school.

The leadership tried something new today, and I have to say, I'm a fan. They called it "Choose Your Own Meeting" -- and I hope this becomes a regularly scheduled thing.

The morning was broken into 2 parts (not including breakfast, of course); and everyone had 4 sessions from which to choose: crafts, makeup, yoga, and couponing. 

It was hard to choose, but I went with yoga and makeup.

First session: Yoga. 

Can I just say, I want Soma and her soothing voice to follow me around everywhere I go? She was amazing. In 20 minutes she helped me feel relaxed, strong, and ready for the challenges the day would surely hold. And that's saying a lot since I'm literally having a hard time making it through my days lately as a mommy. 35 weeks pregnant, trying to balance my kids school schedules, and still clean and cook for my family. It leaves me wanting. Exhausted. Defeated at times.

But yoga, and doing it with a great group of other tired moms who also wanted to sleep on the floor of the choir room during the "resting pose," was just what I needed.

Second session: Make-Up

I love Heather and Carla, and their makeup is always flawless, right? So why wouldn't I want to learn some tips and tricks from these ladies? 

I was not disappointed. If you made it to this session, I don't know what you took away from it, but I am in love with this trick of "contouring and highlighting." Seriously, did you just tell me that I can easily make my face look less haggard, dull and tired? By putting lighter and darker powders on certain areas of my face? It's genius, is what it is. 

This is the stuff dreams are made of. 

If you didn't go to the makeup session, get their hand-out, STAT. Or take these ladies' advice and join Pinterest and YouTube (if you haven't already). They recommend checking out "The Makeup Chair" on YouTube for easy to follow tutorials.

The Day After: An Epilogue

Yoga has made my booty hurt so good. And that makes my heavy pregnant frame happy because it means I did something good for me, and I feel smoking hot even though I also feel super tired and grumpy. It's a good thing.

I tried the makeup contouring tricks before my OBGYN appointment today. The lady at the Kaiser desk told me my top was so cute on me, but I knew she was really just seeing how amazing my makeup was, and how glamorous and awake I looked, and she mistakingly assumed it was my shirt doing all that work. If she only knew.

Keep Your Eye on the Big Picture

Wanna know a secret?  I've attempted to write and rewrite (and rewrite again) this blog post a million times over the last week.

I'll admit that it may have a little something to do with my perfectionist tendencies.  However, I believe that the real reason I wasn't comfortable publishing anything I tried to put together has more to do with what God was trying to teach me in the meantime... more on that in a minute.

We learned a bit about having a financial vision for our family from our speaker, Christy Erickson.  Preparing for your family's future by having a spending plan (a term that's a little easier to swallow than "budget") is counter-cultural nowadays.  So many people are up to their ears in credit card debt because of our generation's "you deserve it" attitude, but it doesn't have to be that way!  Meal planning, couponing, gardening, and simplifying life in general are all great ways to cut back on spending and cut down on debt.  

We also heard from Pastor Robert Gelinas (via video), a husband and father of six who presented at the MOPs Convention last October.  He shared about how his family has created a plan - or "blueprint" - that encompasses`each family member's mind, body, and spirit.  They regularly pray about how to edit their blueprint, get the kids involved in the process, and refer to it often in their daily interactions.  They even created an acronym using their last name to help them remember who they are as a family.

Pastor Gelinas explained that by having (and using) a vision for your family, everyone can easily refocus and keep the big picture in mind when life gets a little muddy.  He said, "Don't let the immediate distract you from the ultimate."

Don't let the immediate distract you from the ultimate.

Easier said than done, eh?

God reminded me of this message all week long, tweaking it to fit the situation at hand, and whispering it into my heart:

"Don't let your the newest Facebook news distract you from playing just one more round of Candyland with your boys."
"Don't let that one little temper tantrum steal the joyful memories you made at the park this morning."
"Don't let the fact that your husband came home later than expected keep you from enjoying what little time you get to spend together."  
"Don't let a silly blog post get in the way of an important spiritual lesson."

Whether it's drafting a will, working on a spending plan, writing a family vision statement or something entirely different, let me encourage you as I've been encouraged this week... Plan for tomorrow, and then act on your plans, so that you can be present for today.    

Mom of the Month: January

Mom of the Month: January

Ciara Fielder

Who is in your family?

My handsome husband, Robert. My oldest miracle, Clayton (6), and God's way of molding my character, Christian (2).

What are your New Year's resolutions?

My New Year's resolution is the encourage someone with words and/or actions every day. It could be a friend or family member or even a stranger. (We are all in this thing called life together why not help encourage each other?)

What is your favorite "me" time activity?

I have 2 favorite "me" time activities scrapbooking (photography) and about 9 months ago I started running.

What was your favorite childhood activity?

My favorite childhood activity was every Monday night was "family night." My dad would play the guitar, we would sing, play games, etc. It carried into our teenage and adult years. And now even though we all live in different states we all having family nights with our own families.

What advice or encouragement can you offer the other moms in our group?

My advice would be, don't do this motherhood thing alone. Do play dates, grab a girlfriend and go for coffee, do a Bible study with friends, and make sure you get some "me" time.

Mom of the Month: December

Mom of the Month: December

Yesenia Jamison

Who is in your family? 

My husband is Vincent Jamison and he is an Estate Planning attorney here in Modesto. We have been married 8 1/2 years and have two beautiful daughters Gisselle Rihanna, 4, and Stella Rose, 2.

What is your favorite childhood holiday memory?

I am full Mexican and was raised in a Catholic home. Our tradition was to stay up until past midnight and welcome Christmas Day as a family. We were able to open our gifts at midnight, which my parents did only things we needed as gifts, so yes underwear and socks were a signature gift, except we did get a bike one year. We then hurried off to mass at 12:30am. I loved this, as Christmas Day was not about the gifts but about Jesus' birth.

How will you be spending your Christmas holiday this year?

For the first time since my mom was diagnosed with Breast Cancer, she was feeling well enough to travel to Mexico to see family, so our Christmas will be spent at our new place on Christmas Eve with my brother and his family, as we stay up until midnight to welcome Christmas Day. On the actual Christmas Day we will be making memories with our little ladies in the morning and then heading up the road to my in-law's house to celebrate with my husband's side of the family.

What is your favorite "me" time activity?

My favorite "me" time is going to Starbucks or lunch by myself...I can check my Facebook, Pinterest, etc. without a little one asking me to play a game on my phone, feed them, or have to stop a melt down. It is amazing how much food I can eat when I can actually sit down and do it! I am also a big thrift store person, so I try to sneak that in every time I get my alone time.

What bit of advice or encouragement can you offer the other Mommies in our group?

I am so new at this mom thing that I am not sure if I can give sound advice. I can tell you what has worked for me...

I make sure I make my kids belly laugh every day, there is something about them laughing that energizes me and them as well.

I have seen in my personal life how things can change dramatically from one day to another, so I try to live today as best as I can, as tomorrow is not promised.

Lastly, I try to be as real with my children as possible. My husband and I don't try to show our kids a perfect marriage because one does not exist, we are honest about our mistakes and when needed I go and apologize to my kids when I loose my temper. I love their daddy in front of them, as well as show them at times sin can enter our home and turmoil will arise. It is important to me that my kids see our "perfect" mess, that way they will know as adults how to deal with the good times and bad times.