Shepherding a Child's Heart

When we first moved to Texas I was looking for any and every opportunity to meet other people and acquaint myself with our new surroundings.  I filled my calendar with library story times, mommy & me fitness classes and a quest to explore every walking trail, park and green space in the area.  As time went on I found that our weekly trips to the grocery store usually provided numerous opportunities for me to meet someone new or encounter other moms with their littles in tow, which felt authentic and inviting.  I gave myself permission to ditch the fitness classes and instead find a rhythm of normal life that better accommodated nap times for Nicole.

As a stay-at-home mom, I create our schedule and ultimately decide what things are part of our day.  It has taken a lot of self-awareness as well as some pretty strong boundaries to live each day with both purpose and restraint.  I don't want to "do" too much because I am not the best version of myself when my plate is too full, but also because I want there to be margin for Nicole to grow, learn and explore without a structured activity or pre-determined agenda.  I want to "do" some things because there is usually an opportunity for building community, having fun or trying something new.  It's a balancing act that I take very seriously and it's something that I frequently re-evaluate.

One of the new things that I was invited to do more than once this past year was to join a women's Bible study at my church.  It has been years since I've been in a Bible study and as much as I loved the idea of it, I knew that it wasn't the right time to sign up.   The studies at my church meet from 10am-12pm and since that  pushed both lunch and nap-time later than normal, I knew that both of us would spend the rest of the day trying to find our sense of normalcy.  I felt peace about waiting to join a study until Nicole was a little older and a little less nap-dependent.  I thought it was going to be a couple of years before I was sitting around a table, studying God's Word with a group of women, but to my absolute delight, my MOPS group provided this amazing opportunity for me to be part of a study called Shepherding a Child's Heart this semester.   The study meets on the Wednesday mornings we don't have MOPS, child care is provided and the whole thing wraps up by 11:15am keeping our lunch and nap time right on schedule.   In addition to being incredibly convenient,  it has also been extremely impactful.

It's no secret that I love a good parenting book.  Shawn and I are both avid learners and we love to get our hands on whatever tools will help us learn things like how to sleep train a baby or how to potty train a reluctant toddler.  Parenting books have helped me confidently navigate the challenge of nursing Nicole when she was a baby, prepare and serve Nicole a balanced diet once she started solid food and even figure out how to teach her to share with her friends.    I knew that this Bible study was right up my ally since it's all about parenting but I had no idea how deeply it would grip my heart.  I am learning things that go beyond a single developmental stage or circumstance and I know that these truths will shape the way I parent Nicole forever.   It's been stretching, encouraging and so helpful!

I hope you have a fantastic week!
Love,
Erica