When I got the positive pregnancy test, I just assumed that nine months later, I would be living the stay at home mom life. That was what I knew. I couldn’t even fathom the alternative. But as doors continually slammed shut to make that happen, I was faced with the question all working moms face at some point: How can I be a good mother if I work? I truly believed for nine months that God’s will for me was to be a stay at home mom in the season of new motherhood but I ignored the call he had for me. The call for me that was so much harder for me. He was calling me to something higher than the ideas I had for myself and our family. ““For my thoughts are not your thoughts  neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts (Is 55:8-9 NIV).” Now, being a working mom or being a stay at home mom isn’t inherently better or harder than the other across...

Earlier this week, I posted five tips on how to handle your first day back at work after having a baby. But the first day is just that: one big hurdle to this season of life juggling being a new mom. It may seem like it will never get easier. Some seasons may be harder than others but eventually, you will find your groove. These are all resources I used when I was preparing to go back to work in August of 2017 after seven weeks of maternity leave. These all have great information and I've been able to build upon the things I learned from other online resources. Here's even more encouragement for that first nervewracking day back. Here's the Pinterest board I created while on maternity leave of meals that require almost no hands-on prep time in the kitchen. No need to order expensive takeout or spend your precious moments at home with a baby that's awake cooking dinner! This recipe is one of our favorites in particular and the leftovers go great on a salad t...

So remember earlier in the week when I wrote about having grace with yourself in whatever season you're in when it comes to spending time with God? I promised you a post with some practical ways to apply that; ways to squeeze in that time during your days. No matter how busy you are, there's got to be some sort of time you can repurpose to get in some prayer or Bible time.  You're in the season you are in for a reason. If you find yourself thinking "well, that's now how time with God is supposed to look like," I encourage you to reframe your thinking. It's supposed to look like how it is right now in the God-given season you're in! In the car: 1. Listen to the YouVersion Bible app. The Bible audio is a bit more than 70 hours long. If you have a half hour commute every day, you could listen to the Bible three times each year just in your daily commute. 2. Listen to sermon podcasts. I like The Village Church's podcast . 3. Liste...

Everyone I know has at some point or another said they have difficulties making time to spend with the Lord. I thought I had issues...until I had a baby. I could hardly take a shower or eat more than a granola bar. How was I supposed to sit down for a half hour to study scripture? I beat myself up over it for a while, until I had been back at work for months and I listened to an episode of the Journeywomen Podcast . It’s about spiritual disciplines and a man is the guest, but he gets it. “If you’re a young mother and you’re getting up at five o’clock in the morning or maybe three o’clock in the morning with a fussy child, or a child that needs to eat, maybe the most spiritual thing that you could do in that moment is not beat yourself up because you’re not getting to read your Bible like you want to, but to recognize that right then, you’re serving! You’re serving! That’s a spiritual discipline. You’re serving your child and your family. Maybe the most spiritual thing you c...