We are taking a coffee break today (ha ha ha) with my friends over at Happy Wives Club!
Grab a cup of your favorite brew, and check out my article 3 Ways to Love Your Man When You Don’t Have 3 Minutes to Spare.
Tomorrow we’ll get back to our Coffee Series.
In the meantime, what are your favorite ways to show your man you love him in the midst of crazy times?
This is Kathi – MOMS – this one Yes ladies, you read that title right-of all the issues to bring up on the topic of motherhood, leave it to this mom (yep, me) to chat about the potty of all things. But with three young children at home, if I know anything, it’s this
Finding time to use the restroom *alone* is virtually impossible these days.
Now I’ll be honest-I was semi-prepared for some of the rude awakenings this parenting gig would provide, but I never, and I mean* never* thought that my trips to the restroom would become chaotic at best. These days? It’s all about using the bathroom as quickly as possible-as in a mad rush-before something catches fire or someone has to go to the hospital.
Yep. It’s no secret that our kiddos tend to choose the most inconvenient times to manifest mayhem within our homes. Spilt milk, dirty dogs running amuck, Frisbees getting stuck on the roof, strangers at the door, and minor flesh wounds all tend to take place while we’re.ahem.”busy.” And as a mom, I can’t help but wonder: Should I feel fortunate that my kids want to be around me all of the time? Should I embrace my restroom visitors, even though these moments seem awkward at best (and kinda weird)? While I’m still struggling to figure out the answers to these questions, I do know one thing for sure: we may never pee in peace again.
Or can we?
I think it might be time to take some action.
Are you with me, ladies?
After all, when nature calls, we had better listen because holding the contents of our bladder for long periods of time just isn’t healthy, not to mention, uncomfortable, Amen? But with a house full of youngsters, heading to the restroom can be a hard feat to manage.one that, believe it or not, may take some planning on your part to achieve. Oh my gosh, wait! Am I suggesting that we start planning our trips to the restroom?
Indeed I am.
Hey, our kids are going to need some sort of distraction in order for us moms to leave their sides and tend to our needs, correct? So, here are just a few things we can do ahead of time to ensure we get the peace we desire and the relief we need:
1. *Games and Puzzles:* Kids love games and their quite fond of putting together puzzles too. Take out Monopoly, or better yet, bust out that 500 piece puzzle with all their favorite Disney characters on it. Talk about buying you some time. Woot!
2. *Snack Time*: Scheduling a bathroom break around lunch or snack time is ingenious if you ask me. Fix them their food, unwrap all juice box straws, delve out some napkins, and then head off to the bathroom. Hey, five minutes of peace is five minutes of peace, right?
3. *Scavenger Hunt*: Head to your computer and grab this indoor scavenger hunt printable (found here). Have a small prize ready to go (or pull out a few dollars from your wallet), and let your kids get to exploring all within the confines of your own home. Talk about the perfect time for a potty break? Boom!
4. *Masterpiece Mania*: My kids love to color, use their imaginations, and create art as often as they can. Bust out the contents of that closet (housing their art supplies) and let them create away. Have older kids? How about a still life? Grab a piece of fruit, or other inanimate object and let them reproduce it. Little Picasso’s in training, eh?
So what do you think? Not so bad, right? Completely doable with minimal effort on our part, eh? Girls, it looks like we may have just reclaimed some of our dignity, discretion, and a wee bit of alone time to tend to “business.” And that’s most definitely a good thing!
OK now this is fun: for readers of this blog, Jenny Lee’s publisher is offering 30% off of Confessions of a Wonder Woman Wannabe. Just use code KathiLipp30
And the fun continues: Purchase Confession and you can be entered into winning this 15 ebook bundle. (See page for details.)
Jenny Lee Sulpizio is a wife and mother of three who enjoys writing about anything and everything under the sun, but especially loves to instruct, motivate, and guide other moms with practical advice, tips, and a whole lot of comic relief in the process. Jenny is a contributing writer for
*The MOB Society* and *Moms Together, *and is the author of the recently released guide for all mamas titled, “*Confessions of a Wonder Woman Wannabe: On a Mission to Save Sanity, One Mom at a Time.*” To find out more about Jenny or to follow her blog, visit www.jennyleesulpizio.com
Guest Blog from Suzanne Eller
1. You’ve been listening to many stories from women who struggle to forgive. How many women struggle with forgiveness in their marriages? 
Nearly 50% of the women who share their stories on my blog, or in person, say that their biggest struggle to forgive is in their marriage.
For many, it’s when a spouse is continually unkind, or says words that diminish her. In this instance, many women bear their soul and are told either to get out, to seek counsel, or to submit.
The first leaves a woman who desires to stay and work things out because she loves her husband and wants her marriage to succeed, with a heavier burden.
In the second, seeking counsel is wise advice, as long as it’s counsel that is skilled in helping a couple, with God’s help, find new ground in their marriage. Many times “counsel” can be someone who do not have those skills.
The third, to submit, is often shared without proper context. The word “submit” is thrown out without the beautiful framework of instructing husbands to love their wives as “Christ loved the church”. This is why wise counsel is key. Submission is respect, it’s great love, it’s working through the harder spots.
2. So, how do you begin to forgive in this instance?
It’s a blend of truth, grace, and confidence.
Truth is shared, perhaps in the setting of a counselor’s office, or perhaps in a moment where it’s not heated, after prayer and with love, and with the intent of working toward a healthier relationship.
Truth is coated with grace, knowing that we all fall short. It’s shared with wisdom and without accusation. And in some instances, it’s shared with healthy boundaries, not to punish, but to work toward the healthiest relationship possible. (A great book on boundaries that is both healthy and filled with wisdom is Boundaries in Marriage by Cloud and Townsend.)
Confidence comes from knowing that the Truth spoken in scripture is who you are. When I began to realize that the words spoken over me in my childhood were from a broken place in another person, it brought two things:
a) I began to see who I was to God. Words mattered, but His words carried greater weight.
b) It brought an element of compassion. This person wasn’t the enemy. The true enemy desires to rob a person of their worth, and value. Just as I was harmed by words, so was this person. It didn’t make what happened okay, but I stopped trying to fix another person (which is impossible) and began to see the greater picture, which allowed me to speak truth with grace, instead of speaking from a place of hurt and anger.
3. What about unfaithfulness?
A percentage of that 50% wrote in that they struggled to forgive because of unfaithfulness. I shared Carlie’s story, a woman whose husband left her after 29 years of marriage. In this case, the word forgive meant that God moved into the broken and raw places in Carlie left by her husband’s unfaithfulness.
He knew her. He knew her heart. She intentionally walked into a relationship with God during that painful time so that He could fill up her “temple”, residing in Her, healing her, moving in her to pray for him and even forgive, as much as was possible at that time, in those moments when she wanted nothing more than to take revenge, or lash out. In Carlie’s case, her husband went on with his new life, but she also had new life in Christ that filled her up in the harder months ahead. She was redefined in so many ways – single mom, single woman. But her role as God’s daughter was made that much more clear and concrete.
For those whose spouse asked for forgiveness and who desired to change, forgiving is key as you rebuild trust. But give yourself permission to be honest with your heavenly father, with the understanding that there is nothing in scripture that condones unfaithfulness. It’s not in God’s plan or His character. If He grieves over the fallen sparrow (Matt. 10:29), then He grieves over your marriage. He is big enough to handle your honesty while leading you to a new level of spiritual intimacy with Him and even tender vulnerability in your relationship with Him as you work through this harder aspect of forgiving.
At this moment, it may seem impossible to forgive on your own, but are you willing? That’s the only question that you need to answer. God is a Healer, and my prayer is that your marriage goes to a new place, but also that you sense God’s hand over you as you work through this difficult place, and that one day you look back and see His tender touch over you and your marriage. My prayer is also that you bring in wise counsel as you work through the past to find a stronger future.
Get the Book
Download chapter 1 or purchase your copy of The Unburdened Heart at Proverbs 31 Ministries.
About Suzie
Suzanne (Suzie) Eller is a Proverbs 31 Ministries speaker and author. She’s written six books, hundreds of articles, and writes devos with Encouragement for Today that reaches over 500,000 women. Suzie is a radio co-host with Luann Prater at Encouragement Cafe Joy FM. She encourages women through two Facebook communities reaching over 20,000 five days a week. She’s been featured on TV and radio such as Focus on the Family, Aspiring Women, 100 Huntley Street, KLOVE, MidDay Connection, The Harvest Show, and many others. Most importantly, she is a wife, mom, and “Gaga” to four beautiful grandbabies. Connect with Suzie at www.tsuzanneeller.com.
Have you ever met someone and from the very first moment of that encounter you knew you’d want to become friends? I don’t have that happen often. Mainly, because the pace of my life seems to always be so much faster than I can possibly keep track. I can see it (my life, that is) running away in the distance and I’m huffing and puffing just trying to keep up.
It’s become rarer these days I am afforded the opportunity to slow down and really get to know someone. But from the moment I met Kathi, I knew I had to slow down…way down…to get to know this wonderful woman who has blessed the lives of so many.
You are among greatness. Those of you who visit this site often and read Kathi’s words. If you don’t already know, I am certain you will soon discover, you are among royalty. This post will probably be an embarrassment to Kathi but it’s simply on my heart to love on her and to encourage you to do the same.
Usually, when I guest blog on a site, I speak about a particular topic; usually marriage. That is what I write about most days on the Happy Wives Club. But as I sat down to write this blog post today, I can’t seem to think to write anything other than what a blessing it is to know Kathi. And how honored I feel to be among the thousands of women who look to her for encouragement.
In a world filled with inauthentic people, she is a breath of fresh air. In a day and age when friendships are developed based on what one can do for you, a person who gives expecting nothing in return is rare.
So please grant me this indulgence for a moment to sit among you and marvel at what God has done and is doing in the life of the woman we all know as Mrs. Kathi Lipp.
For those reading this and wondering what message God may have for you in this post, think about how He has placed Kathi on my heart to love on and encourage today. Is there anyone He has placed on your heart, maybe even at this moment, that you can reach out to by email, telephone, Facebook or any other method that connects?
Sometimes we’re looking for encouragement when we are meant to be the encourager. So I challenge you in this regard. If you take your sights off your own needs and desires just for a moment, who can you encourage today? Whoever just popped in your mind…go with it.
About Fawn
Fawn is a happy marriage advocate and the founder of the Happy Wives Club (www.happywivesclub.com) with nearly 100,000 members in more than 100 countries around the world. Fawn works daily to change the tone of the conversation worldwide in terms of marriage and the negativity often accompanying that term. The Happy Wives Club is a go to place for wives successful in their marriage to share their thoughts and advice with others hoping to achieve a happiness and contentment in their own relationship. When she’s not blogging or connecting with her online community, she is the president of ValRent Corporation.
When Doubt Tries to Bully Us
Guest Post from Renee Swope
One morning I woke up feeling beat up by discouragement. My mind was being bullied by thoughts of doubt. I can’t do it all! I am not cut out to be a wife, mom, or a women in ministry.
As I lay in bed feeling completely inadequate, my radio alarm came on. Suddenly my thoughts were interrupted by Twila Paris singing to me. She told me this was no time for fear, but a time for faith and determination. She challenged me not to carried away by my emotions, but to hold on to all I had hidden in my heart, and all I believed to be true. Then she reminded me of the most important truth of all: God is in control.*
When I heard her words, my thoughts were aligned with God’s truth.I went from feeling afraid to feeling determined. From feeling out of control to knowing God is in control.
We have the choice either to let doubt beat us up or to let God’s truth build us up. If we have Christ in us, we have full access to God’s power and promises to live with a confident heart. But it won’t just happen because it’s possible.
We have to take action. Just as I had to tune my radio to encouraging music, we need to get intentional about tuning our thoughts to God’s thoughts toward us, every day.
In the same way a radio has AM and FM frequencies, so do our thoughts. They are either FM (for me) thoughts or AM (against me) thoughts. And when our thoughts are against us, our feelings will be too.
Next time thoughts of doubt come against you, stop and ask God for His perspective. Do your thoughts match His thoughts toward you?
Here are some AM and FM thoughts to help you get started:
Doubt Diet Tip: When we go on a regular diet, it’s helpful to start a food journal to keep track of what we’re eating. That way we can notice unhealthy habits and find healthy alternatives. For three days, keep a “thought” journal to track what you’re thinking so you can identify unhealthy “against me” thoughts and replace them with healthy God is “for me” thoughts.
Grab a copy of Renee’s best-selling book, A Confident Heart, for ONLY $6.99 – at Lifeway.com and local Lifeway stores this week!
Click here to sign up for Renee’s FREE 7-day Doubt Diet Devotions
Enter to win a copy of A Confident Heart by Renee Swope – just in time for her online book/Bible study starting April 1st . To enter just enter a comment below regarding the doubts that make you less than confident to be the woman God intended you to be. Three people will win!
Renee Swope is the mom of a toddler and two teens, and wife of one very patient man. She’s also a speaker and co-host of Proverbs 31 Ministries radio show. Renee’s passion is to help women rely on and live in the power of God’s promises in our everyday lives. Receive encouragement and connect with Renee on her blog at www.ReneeSwope.com.
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*“God Is In Control,” © 1993 by Twila Paris. All Rights Reserved. From He Is Exalted: Live Worship CD.
I recently read my dear friend’s, Mary DeMuth, book “The Irresistible Table” and thought that many of you would enjoy it as much as I did. While it’s filled with wonderful recipes, it’s also full of great wisdom. If you love what you read like I suspect you will, jam over to her blog to find out more about Mary. Or check out the links below to get yourself a copy. And let me know what you think in the comments below.
You can Have an Irresistible Table
By Mary DeMuth
I’ve been cooking all my life. When friends ask me how I learned, I tell them the story of living essentially alone as a seventh and eighth grader. My mom attended school late, and my stepfather worked the swing shift, leaving this only child to fend for herself for dinner. I grew tired of mac and cheese and Ramen noodles. So I grabbed the red checkered Better Homes and Gardens cookbook and started working my way through it.
The first thing I cooked for company was an entire turkey dinner, finished with an apple pie. I was fourteen years old. I experienced the rush that came in making people around my table happy and content. Cooking hooked me.
As an author of novels and Christian living titles, I’m not known in the publishing world for my secret chef skills, but I’ve done my best to invite the world to my table. Oddly, my writing career started way back in the 90s when I self-published a newsletter called “The Giving Home Journal,” wherein I shared tips for running a home. Had there been blogs back then in the days of yore, I’d have been a mommy blogger. At the end of each issue, I’d feature an original recipe or two, and by the time I finished publishing the newsletter, I ended it by gathering the recipes into my very first book: a cookbook.
Since then, I’ve moved eight or so times, always cooking, always inviting, but I left any future cookbook ideas on the shelf. I had the privilege of winning an Olive Garden lasagna contest (we got free fresh pasta for a year—I still can’t eat the stuff to this day) and had a recipe featured in Bon Appetit. We relocated to Southern France in the mid 2000s where, I kid you not, a French man went crazy-happy over my bread—probably the most supreme compliment a home cook could receive! That’s when I knew I’d mastered breadmaking. (Don’t think me a prodigy. My first loaves could brick a house).
In France, our home was constantly open, and every week I fed thirty or so people at one time. I learned the art of teeny-tiny kitchen cooking, and I became more laid back in the way I welcomed people. Laughter and conversation took precedent over a “perfect” meal. Creating an irresistible table meant welcoming people, providing nutritious and yummy food, and being peaceful in the process.
We’re stateside now, but we still eat dinner together every. single. night. Cooking is my creative outlet, the gift I give my friends and family daily, weekly, monthly. The recipes featured in The Irresistible Table are 100% me-created, tested on finicky eaters, and often consist of whole foods. I am a firm believer that anyone can cook from scratch—yes, even bread—if taught. I come alongside you, happy advice in tow, and help you create the irresistible table you’ve longed for. I believe you can have your own version of an irresistible table.
Besides that, cooking is part of my evil (ha!) plan to keep my children near as they fly the coop. My college-aged daughter comes home to eat, eat, eat, and she’s becoming a twenty-something chef, herself. The cycle continues. It’s my hope that the joy of hospitality, great food, and changed lives can continue with you.
Get The Irresistible Table in paperback for $13.97 or Kindle for $9.97.
Check out Mary’s blog, where you can sign up for a giveaway and check out her cool incentives.
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Bio: Mary DeMuth is the author of over twenty books and speaks about living an uncaged, freedom-infused life. Her biggest accomplishment? Being happily married to Patrick for 22+ years and raising her three amazing kids. Find out more at MaryDeMuth.com
