{Editor’s Note: I wrote this more than 7 years ago. It’s just as true now as it was then. Only difference is, I need to actively work to hear it and believe it more than I did then.} An acquaintance of mine recently asked our group of friends if we ever felt like the best years of life were […]

  I just took another Myers-Briggs assessment. Every time I do it, I feel fear that my letters will change, but no… They haven’t changed since college. 🙂 The numbers strongly confirmed: by this measure, I’m still an ENTP. E= Extroverted (“extraverted” to the MBTI purist) N= Intuition T= Thinking P= Perceiving Here’s one description: Prophet: You are…

Each pregnancy, it happens at least once. A grocery store clerk, relative, older woman, a waiter– someone– says to my youngest child: “Are you gonna be jealous of the new baby?” Here’s what I want to say in response to that: “Be quiet!” (Of course I don’t say that.) What I actually say is, “Oh, no, (s)he is […]

You’ve heard the advice. (heck, I’ve told you to do it!) “Postpartum moms, REST MORE!!” And yet, maybe you wonder… what does that practically look like? Especially when we have other children, and when they’re all/only littles, the advice can seem impractical. “HOW exactly am I supposed to do that?,” you might wonder. Well, look no… […]

Q: I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on how [Titus 2] plays out practically? I’m in my mid-30’s and Titus 2 mentoring is on my heart, but as a homeschool mom my days are busy, and time is the most difficult hurdle. Also, how would you structure your time together with a younger woman? Do… […]

  Over the last year, I didn’t realize what was happening, but looking back, I was fighting a combination of fatigue and laziness. Though I still cared immensely about how our kids turn out, getting off the couch very often felt like too great a burden to ask. Being mentally engaged and physically active throughout each day with… […]

It seems universally true that humans are prone to wait too long to do things we should be proactive about. For me right now, I’m realizing I need to work harder to help my nearly-3-year-old be self-controlled when things don’t go his way. I’m apt to let him go too far down the self-pitying, emotional, tears-down-cheeks train track…. […]

Parenting can be such a challenge. Sin outside our home… sin inside our hearts… the stresses and strains of life in a family… These things swirl together and threaten to knock us off-kilter.  As my husband and I go about life with our seven children (currently, ages 13, 11, 9, 7, 5, 2, and 7 months),…

A young friend of mine, going through her first pregnancy, asked on Facebook for ten newborn tips. And since I try to use all my writing from other places, I figured I’d share my advice to her with you. Here are my top 10 newborn tips: Stay in bed for a week. Minimum. (See the comments for […]

Is this you, Mama? Are you tired of fighting against this sin? I get tired of it, too. Over the last 10 years, I’ve made progress in my fight against sinful anger, but I’m not “over it”– oh how I wish I was! Unfortunately, it is still a sin I have to actively fight, or else […]

“No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.”  — Heraclitus of Ephesus Year by year, changes come. And not merely in fashion, home decor, vehicle design, or celebrity culture. The very common fact of change touches the most simple and central things […]

Why should you listen to podcasts? Because it’s a wonderful way to be encouraged and learn, while you’re doing something else. You can work out, cook dinner, nurse the baby, fold laundry, take a bath, sweep your floor, or tidy your living room… but engage your mind and heart at the same time! So, are you… […]

Oh, y’all, I am SO excited to share with you something I’ve been working on for a long time. My new book, ONE THING: Top Tip From a Mom of 6, is the most important piece of motherhood advice I’ve got. It’s just as relevant for the seasoned mom as it is for the newly…

The other day, we got a new couch. It’s the biggest one we’ve ever had, and meets my one requirement for a couch. A Connell couch needs to: comfortably hold our whole family so we can all snuggle up for a movie or a read-aloud when we want to. This used to be easy to […]