Dear Parents of Teenagers, We Need You to Stop Freaking Out

Dear Parents of Teenagers, we need you to stop freaking out. 

I'm not talking about "we" as in the world in general. I'm talking about "we", the parents of toddlers. Little ones we're raising in the world you're posting about going to hell in a hand basket. 

Do you remember what it was like to be us? To be young and dumb and yet grasping for any and every book on parenting and discipline and organic food choices?

Do you remember how panicked you were that you'd screw up your kid's nap time routine or that the pacifier would get packed in their high school Jansport? 

We're there. Somewhere between mommy shaming and daycare options, organic and non-organic, co-sleeping and crying it out, we need you to turn around, look us square in the eye and tell us this:

It's going to be okay. 

Of course that's not a hard fast promise. No one really knows when it's going to not be okay any more, but when you post things about the rapid decline of civilization via gay marriage, Trump's wig taking over the world, porn and pot being experimented with at younger and younger ages, we need you to also communicate what Jesus did: H O P E . 

It's true, we need to know the facts. We want to be prepared. Dear sweet Jesus we'd do anything to be prepared. But more than that, we need to know that no matter how dark it may feel in the moment, the world is getting brighter because of parents, God-fearing parents like you.

We need you to show us, not tell us, show us that no circumstance, trend, industry, politics or dating fads can change what Jesus Christ says about us and how He will redeem our world. #fistbump

We need to know you've got our back.

We need to know you're blazing trails ahead of us. 

We need to know you're not curled up in a corner around the bend because more than the porn and the pot and the wigs, that is our worst fear.

That someone won't be there to help us out of the ditch when we get stuck or be at the top of the well when we're ready to move on. 

I know this may feel like a rant, but trust me when I say it's not. It's a plea, from a young mom who has no idea how to do this parenting thing. 

We need you to speak life and hope and power into our parenting. 

We need you to cheer us on because I'm not sure we'll make it without you. 

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If you're new to this space, I usually reserve Mom talk for Thursdays. This isn't a mom blog. But I do blog and I am a mom. So naturally, it leaks through.

Girls Rule, Boys... | Baby Reveal

Are still awesome but few and far between in the Mo House. We're excited to announce that Baby Mo #2 is a growing girl!

Some of you are saying, "Of course the Mo's baby reveal was with Starbucks!" And I'm not entirely sure if you're referring to the unhealthy obsession we have, the frequency of free drinks we get, or that most of my blog posts are written either about, in, or around coffee. No idea. ;) #iseeyourinstagrams

Also, not gonna lie, I've been so hungry and cranky with this one, I would have bet my life it was a boy. Nope. Just a very aggressive girl. Maybe there's a chance this one will be like me after all ;)

My favorite moment of the day: Me: Yay! They can share a room! Ty: Holy crap we're paying for two weddings! Sym: More coffee please!  #priorities

If We Were on a Coffee Date | No. 16

Oh hey! It's been a while.

If we were on a coffee date, it'd probably be because something got cancelled and I had a great need for some girl time. #sorryguys

If we were on a coffee date, I'd order a Pumpkin Spice Latte hoping it beckons Fall in Texas. But who are we kidding. Really.

If we were on a coffee date, we'd go straight for the jugular. Ain't no one got time for small talk these days. Visions and dreams, relationship questions and advice and life lessons, even the hard ones would pour out of both of us.

If we were on a coffee date, I'd listen to the words you were speaking but really trying to read the heart from which they come.

If we were on a coffee date, I'd probably be in awe at how God very specifically designed your character, your integrity, your heart and mind and everything that makes up you for a very specific purpose. Even the quirky stuff ;)

If we were on a coffee date, I'd tell you it's rare that someone is as in tune as you are with your purpose. And yet, you hold it with an open hand.

If we were on a coffee date, I'd probably have closed up and reopened the blueberry scone I foolishly bought about 5 times by now. Because I'm starving. And already ate dinner. #pregnantprobs

If we were on a coffee date, we'd both check our phones and be shocked at the time. And then laugh, because it felt like we were just getting started.

Oh how I missed these dates. 

Good Mom vs Bad Mom

I love supporting other writers and ideas that are exploding my mind. This piece by Esther Houston, is one that I can't get out of my head and I hope helps reshape some of my "guilty mom" syndrome. - JM

Original Post by Esther Houston on Hillsong Collective

Being a mother brings out stuff you never knew you had inside of you. An ability to love that you never thought possible before, a level of selflessness you had never experienced before, a grade of sleeplessness you never thought one could survive before. But we love it and wouldn’t trade it for the world. 

We would change everything about it but yet, change nothing at all.

What does that even mean? I’m not really sure, but that’s how I feel.

I’m sure the majority of moms share the sentiment, even though many would be too afraid to admit it and end up sounding like a “bad mom”. So here you go. I’m saying it first so that you can understand that you, dear friend, are not alone; and feeling like that from time to time doesn’t make you a bad mom.

If the single defining characteristic of iconic good motherhood is self-abnegation, her child’s needs come first and their health and happiness are her primary concern. They occupy all her thoughts, her day is constructed around them, and anything and everything she does is for their sakes. 

Her own needs, ambitions, and desires are relevant ONLY when in relation to theirs. If a good mother takes care of herself, it is only to the extent that she doesn’t hurt her children. A good mom MUST be able to figure out how to find time for herself, but only if it’s without detriment to her child’s feelings of self-worth.

How is any of that even achievable? 

Being a good father is a reasonable and attainable goal. You show up, you support, you’re physically there (when you can), you provide. I think I’m a MUCH better father than I am a mother.

Read the rest here.

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Do you feel the struggle? How do you handle the good mom vs bad mom mindset?