encouragement for moms {PRINTABLE}

My sister and I went to IKEA last week. With six kids. Lord help me. It was…eventful. I even decided to have a homeschool clipboard for each of my kids to work on during the one-hour drive. It seemed like a good idea the night before when I was justifying our day of shopping. And it would have been brilliant if my children actually liked the idea of homeschool. But we’re still in transition. All of us.

After fifty-two “when will we be there”(s) we finally pulled into the IKEA parking lot– which I think is way better than Disney World. And lots cheaper. And there’s Swedish meatballs involved. Anyway, we arrived and were thrilled to find out that five of our six kids were within the height requirements of their adult-monitored kid area. Their FREE adult-monitored kid area.

Seriously people. If I lived even slightly near IKEA I’m thinking this would be a good childcare option. It’s free. It’s at IKEA. Granted you can only use it for an hour, but hey. An hour’s an hour.

So I sat our kids down and read through all the rules, because I’m a firm believer in scaring them into obedience when in public. I’m slightly kidding. Slightly. They sat in hip little IKEA kid chairs as I knelt in front of them, explaining. “You have to be potty trained.” Check. “Aunt Leslie and I have to stay in the store.” Twist my arm. “Blah blah blah, rules rules rules.” They nodded and I released them into (what I made to sound like) the funnest place on the planet.

Then our clock started ticking. My sister and I had exactly 60 minutes to cover the downstairs full of trinkets that I didn’t even know I needed until I saw them in all their inexpensive splendor. And we only had one kid — my sweet little two-year-old nephew. Well, to me he was sweet. To my sister he was…unimpressed with the situation. She beautifully handled his flailing and gnashing of teeth until it was time to get the rest of our kids.

 

 

We picked them up and went to the cafeteria which caters to moms. Cheap kids’ meals. Carts to carry multiple trays. And a separate kid dining area with a TV. Admit it. TV can be our friend.

My sister and I sat there looking around at all the other moms, all wanting to just eat a meal in peace without any major meltdowns. And just as we settled in, a boy behind me dropped his entire tray on the ground.

The sound of broken plates caused everyone’s head to turn. It was one of those moments when you feel both comfort and relief. Comfort because you realize (again) that you aren’t alone and that every other mom deals with messes. Relief because at the moment your kids are sitting and eating and not carrying trays or dropping plates.

My sister said, “That mom handled it beautifully.” “You should tell her,” I suggested. That’s when my sister thought of it. We should make little business-like cards to hand out to fellow moms when they handle a hard moment well. Or when they don’t handle it well and need encouragement.

Yes!

So that’s what I did. I made “Giving you props, mama!” cards. Because this motherhood thing is freakin’ hard. And when my kid is the one who flips out and lays on the bathroom floor, I need to know I’m not alone. I need a word of hope and strength.

Just imagine if we joined together and encouraged each other in this wild journey. It could be like a secret mommy handshake, but not. Like an underground club of encouragement, with cards. You can purchase them in my new printable “store,” located in the menu bar above.

Just print out the cards on card-stock paper and hand them out. You may be the only person on the planet who will encourage that fellow mom today.
 

Fill me, Lord…

What encourages you as a mom when you’re faced with messy moments (especially in public)?
 
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