* Mom2Mom: The New Work Out Program *

"Darn! Another day without a work out!"  This thought crossed my mind as my morning passed into lunch time without one free time slot for a work out.

This has been a constant frustration of mine since beginning daycare. Even if I can find time between breakfast time and snack time, between craft time and story time, it is inevitable, that as soon as I begin, someone will burst out into a scream of rage. Or I'll smell poop. Or I'll hear a crash.


With a sigh of frustration I will hit the top button on the DVD player and attend to the children at the cost of neglecting the cellulite on my back thighs and triceps muscles that hangs a little too low when I wave goodbye. Most days, this frustrates me more than not even trying to work out, and so, the days have passed since my last really good work out.

*Sigh*

However . . . as a busy daycare provider and Mama, I think there are some things in my day that should count as a workout. Carrying a kicking, flailing screaming toddler to time out should definitely count as some sort of calorie burn. And lugging laundry baskets to and from my basement should definitely be the equivalent of the Stairmaster. Oh, and don't forget being a pretend horse or dog on all fours for the kids. Surely that equals some intense yoga positions!

In all seriousness, I came to the conclusion today, there are some things I can do to tone up my muscles without a workout. Sure, a work out is ideal but on the days that it just can't be done, there are some other things I can do.

~  While doing dishes I can work on standing up straight, abs pulled in, butt squeezed tight. My normal position is the tired-mom slump. Shoulders rounded, tummy out, and who knows what my butt is doing. But I am attempting to be aware of my muscle groups while standing there at the sink and consciously holding them in a taut position, releasing ever so often, then tightening again.

    I'm trying to practice these same dynamics when I type, fold laundry, clean anything, and even read books.

~ Lifting the kids up into hugs. Instead of using my back, I'm focusing on using my bicep, shoulder, and back muscles. Do this enough times in a day and I've done some serious weight lifting. Not to mention, the kids got a ton of hugs throughout their day.

~ Just a few minutes in the kitchen, standing on my tip toes for 25 repeated movements, toes straight ahead. Then, again, with them pointed out. A third time, with them pointed in. There are my calf muscles!

~ I've already been doing this for years--parking as far away from the store as possible. Getting in that nice, brisk walk to and from.

~  Winter is coming quickly and the kids are housebound like I am. They could use some exercise too. I have been doing stretching for my own circulation and have gathered the children up with me as I do it. They love it. We also found a kids yoga tape that they giggle to and I join them. I must look like an idiot doing "ground airplanes" but at least they're staying out of trouble and I'm getting in some form of exercise!  And these days, some form is better than no form.

* Mothering Heights: A Novel Approach for Christian Mothers *

Mothering Heights: A Novel Approach for Christian Mothers
by Keitha Smith and Susan Brereton.

Retail Value: $15.00

Book summary: This encouraging book uses the charm of timeless literary works and the wisdom of the Bible to reconsider what is seen today as a classic role. Using selected quotes from novels including Sense and Sensibility, Treasure Island, and Great Expectations, the authors offer encouragement and exhortation to women of all walks of life who struggle and strive to be intentional in their parenting choices.

Author Bios:

Susan Brereton is a former New Zealand resident currently living in England. She is a wife, mother of five children, and an interior designer. For many years, Susan has run a Bible study for mothers of preschool children, and has had a long association with the Navigators and Moms-in-Touch.

Keitha Smith lives in New Zealand with her husband and two children, including one with special needs. With a background in training and education, Keitha leads the women’s ministry group at her church and serves on the local school’s board of trustees.
Check out Keitha's fictional Mother's Prayer Blog ,The Jonah Tree. Also visit www.MotheringHeights.org.

A sample chapter is available for review on the Mothering Heights website.

*Disclosure: Mama Buzz and reviewers received a complimentary of Mothering Heights for review purposes



Mothering Heights by Keitha Smith and Susan Crereton has found it's niche on my bookshelf of favorite motherhood books. This is a book that contains though-provoking chapters. Chapters that give me so much food for thought, I could ponder one chapter for several days. I really appreciate that in a book.

The concept that Mothering Heights is built on is intriguing to an avid reader like me. Keitha and Susan took classics such as Pride and Prejudice, Portrait of a Lady, A Room with a View, and Great Expectations and built each of their chapters around the book. Using quotes from the book, they spun their chapter around each thought provoking theme.

For instance, Great Expectations set the stage for a discussion on what our own expectations as mothers are, as well as meeting the expectations of those around us, as we parent our children. My favorite chapter, based on the novel A Room with a View, centered around servanthood, which essentially, is another name for motherhood.

In addition to using quotes from the book, each chapter is also rounded out with verses, which only adds to the depth of the written words.

For those who are not avid readers, and who have not enjoyed classics through the years, this book may be too much for them. It isn't easy reading, though that is not necessarily a drawback. Sometimes we need books that will give us food for thought, and Mothering Heights provides that. 

Mel's Thoughts:
Mothering Heights could not have come at a better time for me.   Written by Keitha Smith and Susan Brereton, it is full of tidbits of wisdom and encouragement for all moms out there, whether stay-at-home moms or moms who work outside the home.  It is a book that really lays everything out on the line, including the misconceptions we had about motherhood before we had children, the expectations we face every day as mothers, and our role as mothers, with our children, within our individual families. 

The chapters in this book are titled after classic novels, such as Great Expectations, Pride and Prejudice, etc.  Just to quote from the book, These have been chosen not only because they succintly summarize the flavor of the chapter content, but also because, in a way, the notion of traditional motherhood has been relegated to that of a classic: something that once was commonplace but now is regarded as somewhat outmoded.  Yet just as some books remain timeless and very popular, there are aspects of being a mother that transcend time and culture because they are of God and God's truth.  Also included in each chapter are quotes from the different literary works that just go along with the chapter content or enhance the content.  At the end of each chapter are discussion questions for the reader to consider or that would make great discussion in a Bible study group/mothers' group.

Lately, I've often commented to my husband how, with all of the advice and topics covered in the world today, it almost feels like you have to be this Stepford wife, or else you're told your kids could grow up to be sociopaths or have behavioral issues, or whatever.  I felt myself relating to not only the authors and topics they covered, but to the other women in the book, whose thoughts they incorporated into each chapter.  There was one portion of the book that was dedicated to giving the reader inspirational examples of Biblical motherhood from the Bible.  Examples like Sarah, Rebekah, Mary, Hannah, and even Mordecai, who although he wasn't a mother, was still a parent.  It was easy to get the gist of much of the book, that clearly, God's expectations are the only ones that truly matter in this life, especially when it comes to being a mother.

I loved the chapter on Sense and Sensibility.  I think I loved it because I love lists.:)  Truly, though, it offered lists of suggestions on Your Relationship With God, Your Relationship With Your Husband, Parenting, Your Health and Well-Being, Managing Your Household, and Finances.  They weren't musts, but suggestions.

The role of Mother is very simply a servant role....and while we are bombarded with all kinds of media, advice, and tips on the subject, it always comes back to what God expects of us, as individuals and what He deems best for our own families....it's not about what the family next door is doing, and it's not even about what your mother did.  It's what is best for your family.  I recommend this book to any mother-to-be and every mother out there.....it is something I will probably keep going back to, especially on those tough days, when I see no light at the end of the tunnel.:)  You can get a copy of Mothering Heights for $12.00 on the Judson Press site. 

* You're Doing a Good Job Mom *

From an email forward that came my way. . .

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response,
the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone
and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, "Can't you see
I'm on the phone?" Obviously not; no one can see if I'm on the phone,
or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the
corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible; "The
Invisible Mom."

Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this?
Can you tie this? Can you open this?

Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a
clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, What
number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30,
please.'

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the
eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude
- but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be
seen again. She's going, she's going, and she's gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of
a friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous
trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was
sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well.
It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself as I looked down
at my out-of-style dress; it was the only thing I could find that was
clean. My unwashed hair was pulled up in a hair clip and I was afraid
I could actually smell peanut butter in it. I was feeling pretty
pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package,
and said, 'I brought you this.' It was a book on the great cathedrals
of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read
her inscription: 'To Charlotte , with admiration for the greatness of
what you are building when no one sees.'

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would
discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after
which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great
cathedrals - we have no record of their names. These builders gave
their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made
great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building
was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the
cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a
tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man,
'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that
will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.' And the workman
replied, 'Because God sees.'

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was
almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you, Charlotte. I
see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you
does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no
cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over.
You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what
it will become.'

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a
disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my
own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn
pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great
builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will
never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be
on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals
could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people
willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend
he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom gets up at 4
in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a
turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That
would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him
to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to
his friend, to add, 'you're gonna love it there.'

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if
we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world
will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that
has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

Great Job, MOM!