From Here to Maternity

Do you ever hear an expression that reminds you of something your mother used to say? Do you find yourself using the same expressions—even the ones you swore you wouldn’t—with your own children? A mother’s words, whether because of wisdom or mere repetition, can become set in concrete in our minds.

Mothers have an adage for every occasion. Meeting strangers: “Don’t talk to them or take anything from them.” Meals: “Eat everything on your plate. There are starving children in China.” Accidents: “Don’t do that. You’ll break your neck.” (My neck was apparently in danger many times.) And just in case: “Always wear clean underwear with no holes in case you’re in an accident.”

Then there was her seasonal advice. Would I really catch pneumonia if I didn’t take a sweater in the fall or went out in the winter with wet hair? I don’t know what would have happened if I wore white shoes before Easter or after Labor Day. I grew up being warned against such folly and so far have avoided it.

See if any of these motherly expressions bring back memories:

“Don’t ask why. Because I said so.”

“A little hard work never hurt anyone.”

“Pretty is as pretty does.”

“If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all.”

“I’m doing this for your own good. Someday you’ll thank me.”

Motherly advice is nothing new. It has been going on since Eve, who probably warned her children of the danger of talking to snakes. In the Book of Proverbs, Solomon tells us that his mother gave him advice: “The sayings of King Lemuel—an oracle his mother taught him” (Prov. 31:1 NIV).  Since there was no “King Lemuel” in Israel’s history, most Bible scholars assume this was what Solomon’s mother called him. (Mother’s nicknames—a whole ’nother category.)

What did Solomon’s mother tell him? She warned him against wild women and alcohol and urged him to be a kind-hearted ruler (31:2-9). History records that advice—like that of many other mothers—was mostly ignored.

Whether personally heeded or not, the proverbs Solomon collected that were included in the Bible abound with motherly (and Heavenly Father) concern and wisdom. Here are a few that Solomon may have heard while growing up around the palace:

“My son, if sinners entice you, do not give in to them” (Prov. 1:10).

“Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!” (6:6).

“Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall” (16:28).

“Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle” (23:5).

“Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue” (17:28).

“The rod of correction imparts wisdom, but a child left to himself disgraces his mother” (29:15).

In other words, Solomon’s mother (like you and I) probably said to her offspring:  “Someday you’ll thank me for this.”

©copyright 2012 by Vicki Huffman

Vicki Huffman is the author of two Christian non-fiction books and one Christian-based novel which are available in various forms through the author (email Mentoring Moments) or amazon.com. To read the first chapter of her novel A Secret Hope at no cost, follow here.

 

 

Sweet Ideas for Mother’s Day

Need some inspiration for Mother’s Day gifts?

Mom’s Love Rub

Jan Nellis’ creamy soaps, scrubs, and candles are simply glorious. I have used the peppermint soap and cannot rave enough about it. Made with goat’s milk and a light mint fragrance, this soap is creamy and moisturizing. I love, love the scent. It is not strong, and smells good enough to eat! There is also a line of massage candles, a Dead Sea Salt Foot Scrub, and a variety of scrumptious soaps. Jan’s signature Mom’s Love Rub lotion is made with no preservatives and includes aloe vera, shea butter, and honey (from bees she raises!). It is good for dry skin, bug bites, stings, and even sunburns.

I appreciate Jan’s dedication to all-natural products and high standards. Along with her husband and five children, Jan leads a self-sustaining lifestyle. She also has a great book on dehydrating called Delicious, Delectable, and Dehydrated.

Check out her beautiful site at Mom’s Love Rub.

Pouchee
Have you heard of this? Let me share!

Pouchee is a purse insert that holds all the most important things such as makeup, cards, checkbooks, money, and a pen. It even has three slots that can be used to house a cell phone, small camera, and iPod. The best part…when it is time to change out purses, it is as quick as putting Pouchee in the new one!

Now where was this nifty invention when I was carrying a diaper bag? Perfect for all you Mommies who like to consolidate and carry your important things in a diaper bag when out with the kiddos. When it’s time to carry your purse, it is as simple as putting Pouchee in and you’re set! Here’s a video showing how Pouchee organizes everything:

Last summer the Pouchee company sent me a cotton Pouchee in khaki  to try out. I have used it ever since! It is available in a variety of colors and in leather. In fact, for Christmas I gave my mother and mother-in-love both Pouchee’s in leather. To make it a bit more fun, I filled their Pouchee with some extras such as a pack of Kleenex, a card, mints, new pen, hand sanitizer and a gift card.

 

Perfect Books for Summer Reading and Gift Giving

Many of the writers here at MMCW are authors. They volunteer their time to MMCW, sharing their wisdom and insight weekly. If you enjoy their writing, check out their books:

Women of the Secret Place: A collection of inspirational stories and personal moments with GodBy Ruth Ellinger / Ambassador-emerald, Intl.

Married Mom, Solo Parent: Finding God’s Strength to Face the ChallengeBy Carla Anne Coroy / Kregel Publications Married Mom, Solo Parent is a common-sense, down-to-earth look at the struggles wives and mothers face when their husband is not actively involved in family life. Writing from her own experience as a married single mom, Carla Anne Coroy will help wives and mothers sort through their questions, such as: Can I do this alone? How do I raise kids to honor their father? How do I give my children a healthy perspective of marriage if they never see one in action? With practical suggestions, anecdotes, and biblical teaching, this book will encourage moms to see their position as a high calling, to find healing for their worries and frustrations, and to tap into God’s strength for help in facing the daily challenge of being a married mom, solo parent.

Preparing My Heart for Grandparenting: Passing on a Legacy of Faith

A Secret Hope – eBook By Vicki Huffman / WestBowPress

Creative Slow-Cooker MealsBy Cheryl Moeller / Harvest House Publishers  Short on time? These taste-tested dishes are long on convenience! Sharing more than 200 recipes, Moeller shows you how to use two crockpots to prepare delicious, healthy, frugal meals. In the morning just combine the ingredients in the pots and come home to Harvest-Time Halibut Chowder, Mediterranean Rice Pilaf, Rhubarb Crisp, and more delicious dishes. Spiral Bound.

 

What do you have planned for Mother’s Day this year?

 

 

 

 

The opinions expressed are my own. I was not asked to give a favorable review of any item referenced, compensated for a review, nor was a review sponsored. I was sent a Pouchee last summer to try out. All outgoing links access the product referenced. All book links access our affiliate, CBD.com.

The Irony of Good Friday

“Irony.” The dictionary defines it as the “incongruity between what might be expected and what actually occurs.” Life and literature abound with it. Consider several examples:

*“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winder of despair.” So Charles Dickens began A Tale of Two Cities with its bloody background of the French Revolution. But, ironically, threaded through the depiction of violence and hatred is the story of one man’s sacrificial love for his friends, a love so strong he gave his life for them.

*A Hanoverian countess, known for her disbelief in God and her mockery of the resurrection, issued explicit instructions that after her death, she was to be put in a tomb and the corners were to be fastened to the granite by massive iron clamps. When she died, the instructions were carried out and the inscription she had chosen etched into the granite: “This burial place, purchased to all eternity, must never be opened.”

The countess had been sure that her inviolate tomb would never be opened. However, she didn’t reckon with the root of a small birch tree which made its way beneath the slabs. The tree slowly but surely forced its way through the casket, snapped the iron clamps and pushed open the granite lid. The stone cover with its taunting inscription finally rested against the tree trunk, its words an ironic falsehood.

*An old Hebrew legend tells the story of a man’s journey through a desolate area. He rode his mule and carried his rooster which served as an alarm clock to wake him for his morning devotions. Near dusk the first night of his journey, he approached a small village and decided to spend the night. But the inhospitable villagers turned him away. The only shelter he could find was in a cave nearby. He made his bed and lit his lamp, but a gust of wind swept into the cave and blew out the light. While he slept, a wolf killed his rooster and a lion devoured his mule.

The next morning he surveyed his losses and began to wonder why he was the object of such misfortune. He walked to the village to try to buy food but, to his amazement, he found no one alive. During the night, bandits had plundered the town and massacred the inhabitants.

The man said to himself: “Now I understand my troubles. If the townspeople had received me, I would have joined them in death. If my rooster and mule had not been killed, their noise and the light from my lamp would have revealed my hiding place. God has been good to me.”

*The day was called “Good Friday”– an irony in itself. The Greeks called it “Great Friday.” But Jesus’ disciples didn’t believe it was good or great as they saw their leader arrested and taken away to be crucified.

Good Friday—against a background of violence and hatred, it was the ultimate sacrificial love story. To look at it then, it was the worst of times. It was the season of Darkness; death had seemingly triumphed. It was the winter of despair; all that was bad had conspired to conquer all that was good. Jesus was dead and the tomb was sealed and guarded to make it inviolate.

Easter—with the dawn came understanding. Suddenly, it was the best of times. It was the season of Light; the sealed, guarded tomb had not been able to hold the Life within. It was the spring of hope.

A great irony. Out of death came life. God has been good to us.

Vicki Huffman

* from the Mentoring Moments archives

Easter and the Girl Next Door

The house behind us long sat empty as a FSBO. I called the owner a few weeks ago before trimming back some overgrown shrubs on his side of the four-foot tall picket fence that runs the length of our mutual property line. The overgrowth had killed the grass on my side. “Be my guest,” was his reply. “I’ve sold the house and the new residents arrive next month. I think he’ll replace the fence with a new one anyway. Oh—they have a six-year-old daughter.”

Their six-year-old daughter has become fast friends with my eight-year-old daughter, Caley Kate. With her Autism-spectrum developmental delays, Caley Kate relates much better to younger kids. She had no real friends in our neighborhood until the little girl behind us moved in.

Most every afternoon after school, and different times on Saturdays and Sundays, we’ll see this girl from the house behind us standing on a chair on her side of the fence. She doesn’t call out for Caley Kate to come outside. She merely stands there on her chair and waits to be seen. One of us in the family will alert Caley Kate to this and she will run outside, stand on a chair on our side of the fence, and there the two girls talk, draw with chalk on the fence, or show each other their favorite story books and toys. There’s no gate there (yet), so their friendship is mostly an over-the-fence conviviality. They get to play with each other in their yards. But so many times they are content to stand on their chairs on each side of the fence and enjoy each other’s company that way.

Our little neighbor girl’s quiet waiting for her friend is remarkable to me. It’s like a faith statement: she knows Caley Kate will eventually emerge from our house and run to the fence because they want to be with each other. That’s how it is with friends. But I love that our neighbor child realizes she doesn’t have to draw attention to herself waiting, or climb our fence and knock on our door to ask if Caley Kate can play. It would be fine if she did. But instead she stands on her chair at the fence—possible because I cut back the tangle of brush that would have prevented it—and waits on Caley Kate. And her waiting is always rewarded.

We don’t think of the return of Jesus at Eastertime, usually. The focus is on His resurrection. But He rose to return. The same power that shook that tomb will someday crack the sky. And I don’t have to draw attention to myself awaiting Him, or otherwise try to clamber over “things too wonderful for me” to know, like how or when or where. It is enough to stand by faith on His promise, watchful and waiting, anticipating the Friend from Heaven who loves me as I am and will come to me soon.

Cole Huffman is Senior Pastor of First Evangelical Church in Memphis, Tennessee. He and his wife Lynn have five children—and one dog who thinks he’s a kid. Cole’s messages can be listened to on the church website: www.firstevan.org and he blogs at Where is the Fourth?

A Valentine for Jesus

Dear Jesus,

You sent me a valentine written in crimson blood. It says, “I have loved you with an everlasting love” (Jeremiah 31:3). And You’ve also said that nothing can separate me from Your love (Romans 8:38-39).

This year I want to give You a valentine from my heart. What kind would You like? Would one of these hearts delight You?

A faithful, undivided heart that puts You first each day (Matthew 6:33).

A true heart that loves You with wholehearted devotion (1 Chronicles 29:19).

A giving heart that is other-centered, not self-centered (Philippians 2:4).

A loving heart that is patient, kind, and forgiving (1 Corinthians 13:4–5).

A sincere heart that bows before You in worship and praise (Psalm 95:6–7).

A devoted heart that sings, “My Jesus, I love Thee, I know Thou art mine” (see Psalm 18:1).

Lord Jesus, this Valentine’s Day I want to renew my love for You. Please help me remain faithful to You and always put You first in my life. Thank You for Your incredible love for me. Help me love You more each day.

Your beloved bride

 

What kind of a valentine could you give God this Valentine’s Day?  Would you like to give Him a changed heart? Or renew your commitment to love and cherish Him? Perhaps you’d like to sing a love song from your heart, say a prayer of gratitude, or write a love letter or poem to show your devotion.

Whatever you give from your heart, God will accept with joy. “As a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Isaiah 62:5).

 Express your love to God, and rejoice in His great love for you!

Favorite Valentine’s Day Desserts

Are you still thinking about what to make for a special family Valentine’s Day dessert? My criteria is simple: chocolate and easy to make.  Here are my top picks from MMCW’s Recipe Box for favorite Valentine’s Day Desserts.

Angela’s Caramel Mocha Truffle Cupcakes. Nothing sounds yummier than a truffle cupcake! Angela gives step-by-step instructions in photos to make this an easy dessert to make for Valentine’s Day.

 

Molly’s authentic Black Forest Cake is one of her family’s favorite desserts.  Using a basic boxed cake mix to save time, Molly also shares step-by-step instructions.

 

Any cake that includes candy bars is a winner in my book any day. Katharine’s Dream Cake combines angel food cake, candy bars, and whipped topping for a delicious dessert.

 

Diane’s old-fashioned Chocolate Chess Pie  is a perfect finish to any Valentine’s meal.

Are you planning a special dessert for tomorrow?

Valentine’s Game: Getting to Know You

Every month we meet with five other couples for supper in one another’s homes.  This Supper Club has been meeting together for years, and we know one another quite well.  Or do we?

My husband and I host the Supper Club every year in February, and we enjoy preparing a Valentine’s quiz for our friends each year.  The laughter—and even tears—around the table have drawn us closer as friends.

Husband and wife each answer the questions on their own, and then we go around the table one question at a time, sharing our answers aloud.  Couples who have the same answer get a point and the couple with the most points “wins.”  The second section (Things I want to say….) doesn’t earn a couple points toward the game, but everyone still feels like a winner as couples are drawn closer to one another through reflecting on happy memories and sharing expressions of love for one another publicly.  You can read our quiz from two years ago here.   Last year, we asked couples to answer the following questions:

If I recall right….

My first date with my spouse was to………?

I was first attracted to my spouse when……?   Extra Credit…Where?

The strangest thing we ever did together was….?

We named our first child (their name) because…….?

Wives: The most romantic thing my husband has ever done is…..?

Husbands: The most romantic thing I’ve ever done for my wife is….?

What is the thing we have most in common?

 

Things I want to say….

If I could relive one thing (experience, time together, vacation…etc.) with my spouse and had to relive it exactly as it happened the first time around I would relive……

I don’t think I have expressed enough appreciation to my spouse for…..

Lately, my spouse has blessed me by…….

Valentine’s Craft: Card Cans

Valentine’s Day is one of those school days that lends itself to many special memories.  Who doesn’t remember decorating that white sack in anticipation for all the valentines our classmates would pour into it.  This year, make Valentine’s Day extra special with an easy to make card holder.   Simply ask your local school lunchroom to save large vegetable cans.  On a day when they serve soup, they will probably have all that you need.  Wash these out and let them dry.  Next, take the cans outside and spray paint them red, pink, or white.  For the handles, drill two holes into each side of the cans.  Slip colorful Valentine’s Day printed ribbon, cut to the desired length, into the holes and knot on the inside.  Be careful as the drill may have left jagged edges at the holes.  If you don’t want to drill holes for the handles, simply hot glue the ribbon to the interior of the can to form the handle.  Now your children are ready to pick which can they would like and continue to decorate it.  Provide Valentine’s Day stickers, paints, and even heart-shaped stamps.  You will be amazed at your children’s creativity, and they will be so proud of their beautiful Valentine holders.  Best of all, you’ve saved a lot of cans from heading to the landfill.

Why not plan a Valentine’s Day party and have everyone in attendance make a bucket?  Invite all of your children’s friends and instruct them to bring cards to exchange.  For a complete party planning guide, visit Currclick to purchase a Valentine’s Day Party eBook which includes printable cards, games, snack ideas and more.

About the author:

Kathy Hutto is a wife, homeschooling mother, entrepreneur and author.  You can visit her online at www.toddlerbitesblog.wordpress.com.

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Home for Christmas

The first time I went home for Christmas, I was in my freshman year at college 1500 miles away from the military base in New Hampshire where my parents lived. My flight was to put me in Boston by 6 p.m., but bad weather delayed it. The counter agent promised to get a message to my parents that my plane would be late.

I arrived in Boston three hours after the flight was due and saw no familiar faces. After having my parents paged and getting no response, I called the house 50 miles away. My mother said they had just returned from driving in a blizzard to the airport where they were told that my plane had come in and I wasn’t on it. They returned home. And my father was furious with me.

When I asked how long it would take for them to come back for me, my father got on the phone and made it clear he would not get out on those roads again. From the sound of his voice, I knew that he had been drinking more than usual so it was best he didn’t drive.

“But how can I get home?” I asked.

“You’re in college. You figure it out,” he said and hung up.

I discovered I could take a shuttle to the bus station, wait two hours and get the late bus to the town outside the military base. I had just enough money (no credit cards) to pay each bus fare. The snow had stopped falling and it was a beautiful clear night by the time my cab from town pulled up to my front door at 2 a.m. No place ever looked as good. My mother helped me carry my things up the stairs. In the corner of my room stood a Christmas tree about my height, covered with red lights and white angel hair. It was the first time I ever had a tree in my room.

Even though exhausted from the trip, I stayed awake a long time watching the tree lights casting a soft red glow in the corner. From my bed, I could see through the window the moon glowing on freshly crested snow. I thought about families and how good things—even small evidences of love—can sometimes cover the bad, like snow blanketing the dirt and asphalt. Dad’s alcoholism and cynical nature had been a constant source of distress throughout my childhood. But that night he had unknowingly given me a gift—the realization that I had grown up.

As I looked at the tree, I thought of my mother, an undemonstrative woman, who didn’t often express her love in tangible ways. She had decorated it for me, despite the synthetic strands of angel hair that cut her hands and aggravated her allergies. That tree remains one of my best Christmas memories.

Going home for Christmas. That phrase can either lift or sadden our hearts. For many it is a poignant reminder that there is no childhood home or parents left to visit and, like it or not, we have grown up.

Christmas often brings with it a paradox, a reminder that the best times can be woven tightly together with the worst times. But that is also the way the first Christmas was. Mary and Joseph endured an arduous journey to the village of Bethlehem, Joseph’s ancestral home of record. They arrived late and tired. There were no friendly faces to greet them—just a grudging innkeeper offering a dirty stable as a refuge. But that stable became the home of the most miraculous event the earth had ever known. As author Michael Card said of the nativity in his book Immanuel (Nelson 1991), it was “a paradox and a mystery…the plainness and the greatness of Jesus, the grime and the glory.”

Things were not easy or Christmas-card perfect for Mary and Joseph. But God was with them, reminding them of His love in the form of the Baby they tenderly held, the one who was called “Immanuel” which means “God with us.” The amazing grace of Christmas is that when God came home for Christmas, He made His home with us.
Vicki Huffman’s Christian non-fiction book, The Best of Times, in which she uses many examples from the familiar to make a spiritual point, is now available on Kindle at amazon.com for only $2.99. And the first chapter of her Christian novel, A Secret Hope, which begins and ends in the Christmas season may be read free in the gift shop here.

 

 

Christmas Petit Fours

When I tasted these delicious petit fours at my sister’s baby shower, I knew I had to make them for my family’s Christmas celebration.  Although mine did not look as perfect as the ones I had eaten at the shower, they were every bit as yummy.  These decadent treats are well worth the extra time and effort they take to make.  I owe a debt of gratitude to Kaaren Rue for giving me this fantastic recipe which will now be an annual Christmas tradition for our family!

1)  Bake this cream cheese pound cake in a jelly roll pan, so that the cake is about 1” thick.  Instructions for making the petit fours are below the cake recipe.

Cream cheese poundcake:

2 sticks margarine (softened to room temperature)

1 stick butter (softened to room temperature)

One 8 oz package cream cheese (softened to room temperature)

3 cups sugar

6 eggs (room temperature)

3 cups sifted cake flour (if cake flour is unavailable, sift all purpose flour twice)

2 tsps vanilla

1)   Cream the margarine, butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer until very fluffy (about 5 minutes). Add sugar and beat for 5 additional minutes. Add eggs two at a time, beating well after each addition. Add sifted flour and vanilla and mix well.

Bake in a 325F oven for 1+ hour in a greased and floured pan.  Start testing for doneness after 1 hour.

2)   Remove cake from pan and allow to cool.  Cool the pound cake thoroughly, wrap well in saran wrap, then a layer of aluminum foil. Freeze the cooled cake solid until you are ready to cut it into squares and glaze it.  This can be done weeks in advance if desired.  The frozen cake is much easier to cut and has less crumbs, so this is an important step even if you are not making it far in advance.

3)      Remove frozen sheet cake from freezer.  With a very sharp serrated knife, trim all edges off frozen cake.  Score cake in 1 x 1” squares.  You can use a ruler so the lines are straight.  Cut the cake into squares and set on cooling racks with cookie sheets placed underneath.  If your cake is more than approximately 1” thick, you may need to trim off the bottom of the squares so that the glaze will cover them evenly.

4)      Make Petit Four Glaze:

Petit Four Glaze

9 cups sifted powdered sugar (this will take 2 pounds)

½ cup light corn syrup

½ cup water

2 tsps almond extract

4 oz. melted vanilla almond bark

Melt all ingredients together in a double boiler or large melt-proof bowl set over a pot of simmering water.  Melt and stir until the mixture becomes very smooth.  You can add a tiny bit of water, a little at a time, if the mixture is too thick.  Be careful not to overheat.  The glaze should pour easily from a metal ladle.

5)      When the glaze is the consistency you like, begin pouring it gently and slowly over each square of cake.  The cookie sheet underneath the cooling rack will catch all the drips.

6)      It will take multiple layers of glaze to get good coverage.  You may need to double or triple the above glaze recipe if you don’t want to see any cake through the glaze. Be sure to reserve a small amount of glaze for decorating your petit fours.

7)      Let the glaze dry. Tint some of the glaze and put it into a Ziploc bag.  Cut a very tiny hole in the tip of the bag and decorate the cakes with lines, swirls, hearts, etc.

8)      My friend discovered that you can scrape the icing from the cookie sheet and reheat it one time.  After more than one reheating, however, the icing starts to get gloppy.  Also, if you are reheating the icing, make sure there are no cake crumbs in it.

9)      I kept half the sheet cake frozen for later use, and refrigerated half the glaze for about 3 weeks.  This enabled me to serve the petit fours at two different occasions, since this recipe makes a large quantity of this decadent dessert.  I did not notice any major differences in the look or taste of the cakes or glaze the second time around.

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