Introducing: (in)Motherhood!

Hey everyone! I can't begin to tell you how excited I am to be partnering with Mary Beth at New Life Steward as your "(in)Motherhood" team! I'm probably going to use entirely too many exclamation points in this blog post, so y'all will have to show this mama a little grace. This opportunity from the (in)courage team to be an (in)courager to new (and expecting!) moms is an answer to prayer, so I'm ... well... excited :D

A little bit about me:

I'm married to my high school sweetheart Matt (celebrating 12 years together, 6 years of marriage this year) and mom to a feisty, happy 10 month old little girl named Madison Sophia.  I work full time at a local bank as a project manager/marketing officer, hubs teaches 3rd grade, and I also manage Matt's worship band, Stars Burn Down (he plays bass). I have never eaten a corndog and have no desire to ever do so, thankyouverymuch! You can check out these posts if you'd like to get to know me a little more:

Madi at 10 Months
Revolution
Pursuit
Through New Eyes

Becoming a mother was not a life long dream of mine, but becoming Madi's mom has turned my life on its head in so many ways that I couldn't possibly imagine anything else. This motherhood thing is not easy, and I have been blessed so deeply by the encouragement of other moms that I simply have to do the same. I'm not an expert. I fail more than I succeed. My daughter isn't perfect, we are not perfect parents, we second guess our decisions, and in the end, fall flat on our faces before our Father in awe of the grace He pours over us to have another day to try it all again. 

Top 3 Things I Wish I'd Known:

There are certain things no one tells you before becoming a mom that I'd wish I'd known:

1. Sleep deprivation physically hurts. But you will survive.

2. You will find poop in unexpected places that do not include your child or her changing table. 

3. What worked yesterday/this morning/2 hours ago will probably not work the next time. 

Our prayer is that this group will be there to (in)courage you when you stumble upon some of those "why did no one tell me THAT was going to happen?!" moments - because we've been there. You've been there. And this isn't just about what Mary Beth and I have to say, it's about the community of new moms coming together to pray survival over one another when the child. will. not. go. to sleep. 

So if you haven't run away screaming yet, here's the description of our group: 

Between piles of dirty clothes, diapers, toys, carseats, feedings, sleepless nights, child care options, trying to maintain a home and work (in some form or another) – we get “new moms!” We are blessed to feel called to encourage you! We’re going to keep it real as we share honestly about the highs and lows of motherhood, where God has called us to be, and how we are drawn to our knees daily to lift up our families – because the only perfect parent is our Father. We aren’t experts, but we’ve been there – we ARE there, and we pray that we would be (in)couragers to new (and expectant!) moms as you walk through this season. We’re already praying for you & focusing on Joshua 1:9 as our theme verse!  

If this resonates with you at all and you'd like to join our group, we'd love to have you! We'll be meeting on our private Facebook page (private so we can share openly, offer to pray for one another, share photos of your littles, etc.) and checking in occasionally on Twitter with the hastag #(in)motherhood. Also, if you'll be at Allume this year, we'd love to plan a face-to-face meet up with our group so we can give you big hugs (and probably chocolate. There will be chocolate). 

To join, just email either myself at crystal{dot}stine{at}gmail{dot}com or Mary Beth at newlifesteward{at}gmail{dot}com and we'll send you all the details you need. We can't wait to start (in)couraging you! (and don't feel badly if our group doesn't fit where you are - you can check out the complete list of groups at (in)courage to find one that meets your needs!)