Hello from Guatemala!!!
I’m so happy to be here! For the past few years, our church has sent a group of youth and youth leaders to a remote area there to serve with children and youth ministry. Many mothers will bring their children to these events and become attached, so it was in the heart of our church leadership to send other mothers to just be with these mothers and help them feel seen, pray for them, and encourage them. So, here I am with 3 other moms from our church who will be doing that next week. I am so grateful and humbled to be here!
This is my bucket list experience. Many of you know that David was adopted and born at home, but he is Guatemalan. I have such a heart for her mother and ever since we adopted her I have wanted to go to Guatemala and see where her family is from. To do that and to serve women here in the country he came from is an amazing experience!
Stay tuned next week when I’ll be sharing ALL about my trip – and be sure to follow along on Instagram. I share daily updates of our time here. It was AMAZING!
Before I leave home, we celebrated TWO birthdays in our family this week!!
Happy 4th birthday to my baby boy, Micah! You are the sweetest gift in our home and a constant source of laughter, kisses, and hugs!
You often run up to me and say, “I love you, mommy!” And it melts my heart!
I’ve loved watching you get into new things this year — preschool, potty training, learning your ABCs and basic compounding, learning lots of songs and verses and poems! He has an insatiable love of reading and an amazing memory, too. I love that you hide the Word of God in your heart since you were young and you have such a desire to praise the Lord with your life.
Seeing how kind you are to David and how you always look out for him and protect him makes me so proud. God knew he needed you as a brother and advocate. I am so touched to see you taking care of the sweet baby girl we babysit every week! You can give him a bottle by yourself now and you have such a nurturing heart.
You are so loved by all your siblings and the joy you bring them is so much fun to watch!
You often ask me to tell you what your name means and I like to remind you that you are a tangible reminder to us that “Who is like God?” We humbly thank you for the unexpected and wonderful gift of your life.
We love you so much, Micah Timothy Paine!! ❤️❤️
(See more photos on my Micah birthday post on Instagram!)
Also, happy 19th birthday, Kaitlynn! I LOVE watching you step into your gifts clearly this year as you attend cosmetology school.
You picked up the skills very quickly (as I was sure you would!) and have become an amazing stylist and colorist! I love that you’ll just give someone the highlights of our kitchen (with their permission!) on a random weeknight! I’m so excited to watch you graduate and get a job at a salon in September!
I feel bad that you always teach me how to do my hair better and what products to use for it. Also, I got a lot more blowouts from you this year – which was great! It’s amazing to have a living stylist for all things clothes and hair and more!
You have a wonderful relationship with your younger siblings and I love that you always go out of your way to spend time with them and make them feel special and special.
You have also been such a help since we have been watching our baby girl + you have spent many hours babysitting our family and others.
This year I have seen you go through challenging situations with such maturity and grace. I am proud of the woman she will become and how much she cares about others and has a compassionate heart — especially for those who are struggling.
You bring beauty and laughter and joy to our lives and are such a gift to our home! I can’t wait to see what this coming year has in store! I love you! 💕
(See more photos on my Kaitlynn birthday post on Instagram!)
Regarding parenting, I got this question this week:
Hello. I have followed you for years. Do you have any Christian books to recommend to parents about dealing with the transition of becoming young adult parents? My only miracle child this side of heaven turned 18 and graduated in the spring. He is taking a gap year and will stay with us until he goes to Bible college next year. We have been homeschooled throughout, he has been very easy going, and we have a very strong bond. But I’m really struggling with this transition and I don’t know how to do this with grace and balance, and where and what are the right boundaries, to let go, and again – my heart is broken. We struggled with not having children and I am so thankful for him, I have never wanted one child. It brings out so many GREAT emotions. Thank you.
Thank you very much for this question. First, I think you want to acknowledge the grief you are going through. This is a tragedy! You’re going through a new transition and there’s still a lot you want to grieve.
But we also have a lot to look forward to! So I would just encourage you to allow yourself the space to be sad but also look for the gifts and the beauty. You don’t want your child to feel that, “mom is not happy with me for what is coming.” So be happy with them and give yourself room to be sad.
And again, I would recommend that you ask yourself, what is this opening for you that you may not have had space for before? If you still have the heart to raise, are there children, other women, or someone else that God is calling you to take that strength and fill with that emotion he gave you to raise. I was just praying about that and asked him what is the next season for you and what do you call it?
I believe that one of the greatest gifts we can give our children is to let them go as they grow up. Empowering them with increased responsibility and ownership of their lives and teaching them how to ask for help instead of always thinking they need our help. Give your children the right opportunities to make mistakes and fail while they are under your roof so that you can walk with them through failures and challenges and problems.
If we always pave the way for our children and take care of them so that they don’t struggle, we are doing ourselves a disservice because we are not giving ourselves the ability to build the muscles needed to have wings to fly.
So whether they are 8 or 18, ask yourself: “What can I allow my child to own/be responsible for that they are already ready to do?” Then start giving them ownership and encouragement in that direction.
Encourage them to ask for help when they need it, but when they ask for help, see if there is a question you can ask them to encourage them to solve problems.
I think many mothers struggle to let their children become adults and try to be overprotective and under-managing because they unconsciously fear the future with their growing child. Their identity is very strong for their child. They often create dysfunctional and dependent relationships with their children in the name of trying to “keep them safe” or “protect them”. This process of slowly letting go, allowing yourself to grieve these changes, and choosing to enjoy them and take advantage of your new opportunities will help you. and your child as you enter each stage of a new life.
We tend to see more of what we want. Look for good, beautiful, gifts and you will probably find many around you! ❤️
May we have eyes to see God’s beauty in the world. 💕
A Liter Sale of Beauty Products! Salon Liter products as low as $17.98! (Redken, Kenra, TIGI, Paul Mitchell, CHI, and others)
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*HOTEST* Sam’s Club Membership Deal — Just $15!
Want to buy a Sam’s Club membership? Right now, you can get a a one-year membership is only $15!
This is a HUGE discount off the regular price of $60 plus a HOT Sam’s Club membership discount and the LOWEST price we’ve seen in months!
This is a GREAT time to lock in the price as they raised the membership fee on May 1st to $60.
Valid until July 5, 2026.
Wondering what the best things to buy at Sam’s Club are? Check out this post with 30+ I can’t miss itmust-buy deals at Sam’s Club, rounded up with suggestions from our readers!
In Case You Missed It – Links From Recent Weeks:
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- Hire a Registered Dietitian with Zero Out of Pocket + My Honest Diet Reviews — Do you want to make healthy changes to your diet but don’t know where to start? Struggling to achieve your health goals or feeling overwhelmed trying to stay on track? I was there too – and my experience with Nourish has been truly life changing. Check out this post for my full review and my best tips for getting the most out of your nutritionist appointments.
- French Toast Casserole and Scrambled Eggs ($10 Dinner Idea) – This French Toast Casserole has a crunchy cinnamon topping that totally takes it over the top – and you’ll love how quick and easy it is to put together. Baked eggs are cooked next to them at the same temperature and balance the sweetness of the casserole.
- My Favorite Non-Fiction Books – As many of you know, I am a HUGE fan of books and reading. Making reading a priority – even if it’s just a few pages a day – can make a huge difference in your life! These are 14 of the best non-fiction books I’ve ever read. I hope you love them as much as I do!
