I grew up with only sisters. No brothers meant a lot of women in the household and just my dad for a male figure. Now in my adult years, it is very similar as my husband and I have only girls. I had the privilege and honor to interview both my dad and my husband on what it was like raising only girls. I interviewed by asking four questions.  Q1:  What is it like raising only girls? My Husband: You get lots of hugs and I love yous.  Dad: Raising girls is probably easier than raising boys because boys can be more of a handful. Boys tend to take more…

Whew….what a task in today’s world! Each day our children are faced with so many outside elements…elements that I myself are unfamiliar with as this generation is exposed to things we didn’t have growing up. I assume that every generation has said that, but I truly feel that this generation faces so much more because it is instantly accessed. And unfortunately, I feel that we have a generation that is greatly removed from living a faith-filled life. Children need a good foundation. Boys especially need to be modeled from both their father and mother. Mothers show their sons what a godly woman should look like and aid in showing them…

I will be honest. I have very little in common with my husband, inside and outside. He is 6’7, and I am 5’3. He can eat anything; I have multiple food sensitivities. He loves the outdoors; I am allergic to everything outdoors. He has not picked up a book since reading the Motley Cru diaries ten years ago; I have a stack of five to ten books I am reading at the same time. So, I am guessing you are wondering what on earth we do together, and it is a good question. We have learned that we have to meet halfway. Over the years, we have both tried things…

This month’s theme at Rhubarb & Rubbish was moms. What an amazing month it has been reflecting on important things for moms to do regularly to keep their sanity, recognizing and supporting the tired mom, and finding simple ways to celebrate moms.  In the last couple of weeks, I have been thinking through what does the modern mom look like? We discussed the problems we have and ways to correct them. However, my real thought is why does this really need to be discussed or answered? I believe it stems from what our society paints the image of a mom to be in our current times. Society wants moms to…

Throughout most of my life, I have felt like I am living it to the fullest within my time and budget. However, the past couple of years have left me to reevaluate. There’s no other way to say it….WE LIVE CRAZY, COMPLICATED LIVES…and some days I wonder if I am doing any of it right. My journey to the question at hand started a couple of years ago when my parents, siblings, and our children started an annual family camp. It was geared to get together, hang out to catch up, and enjoy the nature around us…but most importantly to let our kids just be kids. Dorm-style cabins, lodge eating,…

Setting boundaries as a mom is important. It helps to establish good, healthy relationships. It also relieves a little stress.  Examples of setting boundaries would be: For kids, it could be that I’m not going to pack their backpacks for school every day, I will remind them to do it but it is part of their job, but allow them to learn the responsibility. Another one for kids is to have them pick up their toys and put them where they belong so the next time they can easily find them to play with (teaching them both responsibility and respect). When it comes to your spouse having clear communication is…

Being a mom is probably the biggest blessing a woman can have in her life. We play with babies growing up and plan for all the fun that comes with feeding, bathing, and changing clothes. As we get older, we begin to start dreaming of the man that will be our other half to have these amazing children with. And then it happens…we have one or several bouncing, energetic children consuming most of our time and we are all of a sudden exhausted, and the picture we had painted as a child isn’t quite the same masterpiece. The exhaustion slowly sets in but soon our body aches to get out…

I recently took a moment to write out all the commitments that I currently have on my plate. It was daunting, overwhelming and a realization I once again have overbooked myself and probably should be using a platter and not a plate. It happens too easily. By nature, I am a “yes” kind of person instead of a “no” kind of person when I am asked to do something. A work in progress, indeed, and why we are on this journey at Rhubarb & Rubbish. As we devote this month to moms, we wanted to take a look at the importance of a mom finding time to do the things…

I’m writing this as a mom and step-mom of three adult children ranging in age from 20-23. Some of you with young children may be saying, “Lucky girl, she gets a full night of sleep!” You are right, I do, 98% of the time. Unfortunately, I still suffer from being an exhausted mom quite often. The issues that exhaust me as a mother aren’t related to sleeping all night, eating green beans and broccoli, or getting homework done, all while trying to grow in faith, support my husband, work, keep friendships, and all the other demands of life. Now I’m exhausted by helping my kids navigate possible forever relationships, new…

Happy Mother’s Day to all the wonderful moms out there!! You are very much appreciated for all the things you do from day to day.  When thinking about mothers there are many ways to celebrate them. You can go all out and take them out for dinner or give them a spa day or massage or send flowers. Those options are very thoughtful and nice, but we can always just keep it simple. I have two girls and the oldest is a wonderful cook, who cooks totally from scratch and doesn’t always need a recipe. As simple as it sounds, for me, having my oldest cook the meal is a…