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Stay at Home Mom, Find Balance and Be Joyful

May 25, 2018 by Jaimi Erickson 15 Comments

Ready to have the ENERGY to be the best mom you can be? Get started! Thanks for stopping by!

Welcome back! Did you already get started here?


Find balance and be joyful in motherhood. Foc
Motherhood can make us feel that we are in a juggling act. We try to seek balance and be joyful, but kids, husband, house, our needs and wants all pull us in different directions.

We worry that if we drop one ball they all will come crashing down! We are busy and yet not feeling productive many days as the line between needs and wants become blurred.

Attempting to keep it all organized is overwhelming. I have some relief for you.

Stay-at-Home Moms Find Balance

“Learn to tell the priorities from the preferences.” -Ginger Harrington

I am very excited to introduce you to a wife, mother, homemaker, former teacher, and Christian woman who has a faithful perspective on seasons of life. Ginger Harrington, has some great devotions for us that have helped me in moments when I needed to center my focus and stop being overwhelmed with distractions.

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” (Colossians, 3:17)

Ginger Harrington and Jaimi Erickson at MOPS
Ginger was the scheduled speaker at one of my recent MOPS meetings. She gave a wonderful talk filled with great tips that I jotted down because I wanted to share them with you!

Her sharing focused mostly on how to get organized in order to better serve God. She has a sense of humor in her anecdotes that will make you laugh and find joy in getting your life on track.

When life is chaotic, too busy, filled with stress and fear, we must set our focus on what is important.

“Organization is a tool to doing what God has planned for you.”

We tend to define organization with images in magazines, snapshots of other women and moms who are
having a together day when we are not, or elaborate spring cleaning tasks that sound great and get pinned but ultimately leave us feeling even deeper in frustration when we do not complete them.

Balance is not a place where you go and never ever again feel a bump in the road.

Balance is an on-going, always changing, never finished job. If you feel out of balance today, you are just in the process of working your way back to it. If today was a great day, prepare yourself now because the scale may tilt and things may feel out of your control tomorrow.

We all go through this every day!

Finding peace can seem daunting. The world tells us peace is a fancy beach getaway, a brand new luxury vehicle, new clothes for every season…but, peace, true peace, can only be found in one place: Faith.

Ginger’s post Need a Little Peace? explains this so well.

I am happy because the lie of “you can have it all” is crumbling. Women are realizing that we have to set priorities and some things will have to be set aside. Doing it all is an illusion.

There are seasons of life, as I talked about in these posts here and here regarding how the female brain is structured. Many women have the glorious and often challenging gift of giving birth to children-or desiring to raise children even when we are unable to conceive. When we enter the season of
raising children, Ginger reminds us that we must:

“…understand your boundaries and limits in this season of life.”

We will best serve our families and the world when we recognize that we have limits imposed by raising children and accommodate our wants to fit into them. I love this fact! Let us be at peace that we can live today and serve as stay-at-home-moms, and still have much life to look forward to when our children are grown.

It is empowering, not demeaning.

"You are where you are for such a time as this-not to make an impression, but to make a difference." -Ann Voskamp quote Finding balance in motherhood.
It is not easy to cut things from our calendars or limit our focus each day. I feel that struggle now since having twins. My whole family needs and deserves my time and attention. I am constantly in a state of re-balance, and making attempts to re-organize, as I attempt to balance four children and a husband.

That requires a lot of humility, prayers for God’s peace in my life, and relieving myself of any guilt for not doing it all every day.

As Ginger says, “sometimes we need a “Mom-i-tude adjustment” in those frazzled moments so we can regroup and find joy. Grace.

Frustration and Frazzled may visit us, but we can re-balance knowing God intends for us to seek the joy in motherhood.

… mother rejoice; may she who gave you birth be joyful! (Proverbs 23:25)

I do have a little tip of my own that was spurred from Ginger’s speech. She suggested surrounding yourself with bible verses. Write them on index cards-one each week-so you can meditate on them throughout your day.

There is a great collection of bible verses for moms  seeking balance. You can also download these free printable mom motivation cards by subscribing to my newsletter.

Why not post one in the laundry room or in the bathroom to think about while folding laundry or preparing for the day?

Why not post one in the car?

How about posting one near the changing table, or by your nursing/baby feeding area so you can take that time to reflect while you are nourishing your little one?

This is also a great example to show our children. When we get a break, we can grab a verse.

Head on over to Ginger’s blog so you can have her devotional posts emailed to you, or ‘like’ her Facebook page to get connected there.


Ginger has released a devotional that speaks exactly to the lack of quiet time we have in motherhood. Her book Holy in the Moment is available on Amazon.

I interviewed Ginger over on Facebook all about motherhood, prayer, devotional time and the struggle to find quiet moments for our faith in this season of life. You can view the interview via YouTube below.

Recharge when you can. We are at our best when we are serving in the way God most needs us to serve.

How do you find balance in motherhood? 

Find balance and be joyful in motherhood. Focus on faith.

This post is featured in A Complete Guide for Stay-at-Home Moms: When You Need to Connect in Faith. Read all of the inspiring devotions from stay-at-home moms HERE.

Ginger’s posts referenced above:

The Can’t Get It Together Guide to Home Organization

Need a Little Peace?

Mom-i-tude Adjustment for Frazzled Moms

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There are essential oils for parenting! Have you tried them yet? Get the best oils at wholesale pricing.

Successful Mom Daily Checklist to help you gain balance between housework and play time with the kids. Get more done, and feel more successful as a mom and homemaker.

Enjoy your time at home!

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Filed Under: faith, motherhood, motivation Tagged With: balance, balance in motherhood, books, devotion, faith, Ginger Harrington, Holy in the Moment

Comments

  1. Melissa Matters says

    March 26, 2015 at 7:34 pm

    I like the idea of writing verses on index cards! I find posting verses around the house can be helpful for the entire family. Great tips.

    Reply
    • Jaimi says

      April 1, 2015 at 7:51 pm

      It is great for the whole family. Thanks so much for your kind words!

      Reply
  2. JDaniel4's Mom says

    December 11, 2013 at 2:48 am

    I so needed to read this today. With a new job and a sick mom I feel my mom time has been compromised.

    Reply
    • Jaimi says

      December 12, 2013 at 6:50 pm

      I am glad that it reached you today! All of us have our limits and we also have to forgive ourselves. I hope you find a new balance soon!

      Reply
  3. Kate says

    November 28, 2013 at 12:57 pm

    Indeed, we should learn how to prioritize things. This is a very lovely post.

    Reply
    • Jaimi says

      December 1, 2013 at 8:20 pm

      Thank you so much, Kate. Priorities are indeed important. Take care!

      Reply
  4. Ginger Harrington says

    November 18, 2013 at 4:36 pm

    Thanks so much for featuring my blog in your post! I am honored! Love your blog and loved meeting you.

    Reply
    • Jaimi says

      November 19, 2013 at 5:50 pm

      You bet, Ginger! It is wonderful and I wish you well with it and the other aspects of your outreach and mission. It was wonderful to have met you.

      Reply
  5. Carriekiwi says

    November 11, 2013 at 3:15 pm

    Great perspective!!!

    Reply
    • Jaimi says

      November 19, 2013 at 5:49 pm

      Thanks, Carrie! It's a work-in-progress.

      Reply

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I pictured myself as a mom of boys before having m I pictured myself as a mom of boys before having my babies. I have learned so much from all my children but having my girls is a blessing I never knew I needed. 

Want to eliminate mean girls? Raise daughters to do the opposite.

Want to teach women to better communicate with each other? Raise daughters to listen and articulate.

They are my own little girl group and I am grateful for it. They love me on my bad days and give me compliments I do not even deserve. 

I do love being the mom of girls (and boys). They both teach me so much. 

What are the top lessons you wish girls would learn before becoming adults? 

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Will you be spending time with family for Easter? Will you be spending time with family for Easter? 

My husband’s parents have arrived - adding one more big dog to our house and lots of crafts and fun. We have not seen them since June. Everyone is excited to spend time together.

Both of my big kids have birthdays and we will all get to spend time at the beach this month. Our school work will morph into field trips so we soak up every day we can being present with family. 

I am looking forward to making memories, soaking in time together and celebrating two milestone birthdays - one happening tomorrow. 💛 

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🌟The faces we make when a Costco run with all t 🌟The faces we make when a Costco run with all the kids actually goes well!!! 🌟 

Ice cream after helped of course. 😂

All prepped for my in-laws coming to visit us after not seeing them since our move last summer. Looking forward to some fun events ahead that will make my kids think they are on spring break but they will technically be field trip days. Check, check. 

Are you guys on spring break this week? What do you have planned?

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Some days you put on the 10 year old comfy jeans, Some days you put on the 10 year old comfy jeans, fill your mind with encouragement and just keep moving forward. 

Recovery days are not just for working out. They are for the mental state we walk around with too. Yesterday felt heavy. My God is a power lifter and takes the burden away. 

Today will be better.

Today we will rest and refocus.

Hooray for comfy jeans, motivational graphics and the Word to focus on through it all. 

(Faith fashion: @choseninchrist use code Jaimi to save.)

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🌟That Face!!🌟 That little boy is soon to t 🌟That Face!!🌟 

That little boy is soon to turn 13, guys! I mean in a few weeks. 😅

This is a throwback but brings back so many fun memories. 

—————————————

I love creating activities and crafts on the fly. Always have even before my kids were here.

I noticed that my son did not have a lot of little toy people to play with while he was pretending one day. We have a few cylinder blocks in a set. We never used them when we built. I thought we could turn them into little DIY toy people. 

They were so cute and easy to make. It was a preschool art project for him. We made them together.

If you don’t have wooden cylindrical blocks at home, you can use pieces of wood dowel or even a few square blocks glued together. You can even make DIY toy people out of toilet paper tubes. 

🌟Full details through Blog link in bio 🌟

——————————————

I am so excited and yet in complete shock by how fast these little lives grow. I have never missed moments and I am so so grateful especially as we approach the teen years in my house. 💛 Soak up even the hard days of being a mom. TOTALLY worth it. 

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👌 There are a lot of parenting opinions out the 👌 There are a lot of parenting opinions out there. I try to ignore a lot of them. 😂 

My kids stay up later than most recommend, but so did I when I was a kid. 

She loves to read. She loves to write. Abby writes plays, journal entries, songs and on a bad day she will write her feelings about it all, in depth, no holds barred. 

This night she was trying to finish up a play - setting, character details, order of lines - for a play she made for her younger sister. 

I am so thankful that we can count her love of writing in her free time as school work. I am so thankful that how we do school allows this passion and talent to thrive. She has stacks of drawings, plays and writing blurbs. They are all precious to her.

There are days I question whether this choice or that choice is right or “approved,” but it does not matter when I see my children dive deep into the things they love. 

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Give me my people any day. Family time this Sund Give me my people any day. 

Family time this Sunday was a 5k fundraiser race. We helped raise 💵 for the spouses’ club scholarship fund. Scholarships will be awarded for post secondary education to military kids and spouses. 

If you can choose any action in life, choose to help others. Side bonus when it involves fun family time together.

Best day yet. 💛💛💛

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💛 Friday Introductions💛 It has been a while 💛 Friday Introductions💛

It has been a while since I did a good run-down here to give ya the cliffs notes (are those still a thing) version of me. 👋 

💛 Detroit-born a few blocks from where Eminem lived. The city is still my hometown despite moving away as a kid.

💛 I am a big believer in traditional values, but with a modern woman twist. My husband drives his career and I drive this household.

💛 We live in eastern NC 30 mins from the beach. I want to stay here forever, truly, but military life will come to an end some day...still don’t know specifically when that will be.

💛Born and raised to be a planner, Type A personality, having 4 kids beat that out of me 🤣 and I am very “day at a time” now. 

💛I was a teacher turned stay at home mom turned blogger turned entrepreneur that had to set it all on the back burner a bit to focus on homeschooling my kids. I can only have so much on my plate and complete it successfully. (When we listen, God guides and is loud and clear with His direction. 💛)

💛I believe I can be humble and confident; I can be fully present with my kids and make space to rest and rejuvenate; I believe the biggest successes I will achieve in life will not have a paycheck as its valuation. 

💛I believe that true peace, value and love all come from Jesus. 

You will find me sharing the ups AND the downs of motherhood, wife life, homeschooling and being a Christian woman with the modern day pull to fight what that can mean. (There is def a force trying to convince us to push those values aside, my friends.)

👌What is the cliffs notes version of you? What do you want people to know/realize most of all?

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🌟Teaching Kids to Make Friends🌟 Often our c 🌟Teaching Kids to Make Friends🌟

Often our children learn hard lessons when they have to move to a new state or school. 

My kids have become all too familiar with this through military life. Every three years they have to make new friends.

It is not always simple.

As a child, my family moved a lot. We were not military, but in junior high I moved to a new state and had to make all new friends.

This was a challenging and even to some extent a traumatic time of life.

Being the new kid, is a humbling experience. Suddenly you are hoping that your peers will want to get to know you and like you. It creates some self-consciousness.

Reading is such a beneficial way to teach children about life lessons. It teaches much more than that. It teaches self esteem through the cuddle time. It teaches language skills, and it teaches children to use their minds to be creative.

As they have grown and navigated more friendships, books are a resource for us to discuss tough challenges. I have found a great series of books that present friendship challenges and help children learn to navigate them.

It just so happens that the author is my neighbor too! How cool is that?! Moms are amazing.

These books will be treasured by your family for their quality values. The @stingrayjelly series teach children how to make friends and navigate friendships to love others well and support them through shared similarities and recognized differences.

Author, Lauren Giannella is a military wife and my neighbor! Anna Perdue is the illustrator and also a military child. 

Read my blog post for details on each book and links to purchase through @barnesandnoble 

We love our military community and all they do to give back.

What are your favorite children’s books that teach children how to make friends or help them maneuver through tough life challenges?

#books #booksforkids #militaryspouse #militaryspouses #militarywife #militarylife #militarykids #teachingkids #goodbooks #readtokids #readingtime #homeschoolreading #homeschoolmoms #eastnc #usmclife #marinecorpsfamily #motherhoodsocial
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