Mornings for Moms

Today we launched our new "Mornings for Moms" Life Group. It was awesome.

We are rotating who teaches this group, and this week it was my turn. I had the topic of, wait for it:

Mom Anger. 

How's that for diving in head first?!

This is my 3rd time teaching about Mom Anger and I fear that I am beginning to be known as "the angry mom". Oh, yeah...you need someone to teach on anger? Call Stacie. She deals with it a lot! 

Uh...not so sure that was the reputation I was going for, but hey, I'll take one for the team and be the poster-child for Mom Anger since I know it's something we all deal with. 

I gotta tell you, though, teaching on anger is even worse than praying for patience. Everyone knows that if you ever make the mistake of praying for patience, you will be bombarded with a zillion frustrating opportunities to grow your patience. Imagine what teaching on anger provides. Yup. I have been living the past two weeks in a laboratory of anger-inciting moments.

• messes made
• complaining about meals provided
• sibling conflict
• laying on the floor pretending to be asleep during homeschool
• grumpy attitudes 
• outright defiance

Typical mom-stuff. It just felt heightened the past couple weeks. 

Here's a story bound to make you laugh (or blush). Just keep in mind, it's a lot easier to laugh when it's not your kids! :-) 

Last week I took the boys to the mall to buy them some fall clothes. They're a little too old for strollers but not quite old enough to maintain the self-control to make a mall trip enjoyable. As I'm in the process of making decisions on fall wardrobes, they are taking things off hangers, trying stuff on, and then leaving a trail behind them of discarded items. 

I came around the corner at Old Navy to find that my boys had undressed a little child mannequin. I scolded them as I quickly dressed the poor, embarrassed mannequin and then returned to decision making. I looked up again to, again, find the mannequin with his pants down and Caedmon's head right next to his butt. I said (in my staccato "Mom Voice"), "Caedmon! What. Are. You. Doing?" He replied, "I'm just smelling his butt." (As if that would be okay with me!) 

Then, to top off the experience, we walked into another store where Sammy made a bee-line for a full grown male mannequin. Sammy proceeds to grab the mannequin's crotch and yell clear across the store, "Caedmon! I found his penis!" At this point I am thinking, "Where is the closest exit? Do NOT make eye contact with anyone! Whose perverted children are these?!"

So, I for one, am glad that today's talk on anger is behind me. I'm hoping that now some of these anger-inciting opportunities will subside back to the level of "normal". I think next time I'll sign up to teach about something like "creating moments of spontaneous laughter and hugging".

If you are a mom in the Bay Area, we would love for you to join us for our Mornings for Moms. Click here for more info.