The Mundane Moments Matter.
October 2023 Newsletter
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.
Colossians 3:23 NIV
Thoughts to Ponder
Does what I do daily even matter?
Cleaning, cooking, laundry, running errands, packing lunches, picking up toys, reading books to my toddler, sending the check-in text to a friend, grocery shopping, potty training, taking the dog to the groomer, checking temperatures in the middle of the night, scheduling doctor’s appointments… These are the activities that make up most of my days as a stay-at-home mom.
These activities seem so mundane, so unimportant, so not glamorous, so unnoticed… What I do just seems so small. Especially when I compare myself to the super-moms I see on social media. You know, the ones with full-time jobs who wear super stylish clothes, exercise regularly, spend lots of time with their children, take care of their homes, and manage to make homemade meals for dinner every night.
Being super-mom is simply not my reality. For full disclosure, I am currently writing this in my pajamas on a Tuesday afternoon while my toddler naps, and we’re having a store-bought meal for dinner tonight. My hair is freshly washed though, so that counts for something, right?
Logically, I know that what I do matters. I know that a lot of people use filters or only post their highlights to social media. I know that social media is not always reality. I know the comparison game never ends well, yet I can’t seem to resist playing it. I also know that I want to be a good example for my daughter. I want her to find her worth and value in the Lord, not in what the world says is worthy for a temporary moment.
It’s time for a perspective shift—choosing to look through a different filter, if you will. When I look at what I do through a heavenly lens, I see small acts of love and service, repeated over and over and over. When I dig deep into my Bible, instead of scrolling social media, I find countless stories where small acts of faith are praised and where little acts of love and service are valued.
When I approach what I do as an opportunity to serve the Lord, instead of trying to impress others, I find myself more content with the tasks in front of me. When I see each chore as an opportunity to love others, I find myself less resentful for needing to clean the kitchen again.
When I remind myself that Jesus humbled Himself to serve others in not-so-glamorous ways (like washing feet), I find it easier to humble myself and serve, too.
What I’m Reading
I had a few moments (okay, days… and weeks) where I felt like I was just spent—tired, worn down, and like I didn’t have much else to give. I started reading A Little Goes A Long Way: 52 Days to a Significant Life by Rachael Adams as my daily devotional, and it is really meeting me where I’m at in this season. Friends, this is the devotional you need if you’re in a busy season and don’t feel like you have much leftover. Aren’t we all in busy seasons?! Either physically we’re rushing around, or mentally we’re spinning out of control, feeling like we have very little left to give. This devotional meets us in those little moments where we don’t feel like we can have significant impact, and Rachael reminds us that we do. You can get your copy here.
What I’m Writing
I am officially over the halfway point in my book. It’s surreal to think that I’ve somehow written over half of a book in about six months… But I also know it’s not by my doing, but by God. As I reflect back on the last six months, I can see God’s hand in it—His nudging, His timing. I just keep showing up, pen to paper, fingers to keyboard, fueled by faith and coffee. I’m trying to keep this in mind as I press forward into the second half of this book, knowing that to complete this manuscript, I need to be obedient to His nudging, and to keep showing up even when I’m tired (always) or am tempted to zone out to mindless TV (frequent).
Recipes I’m Making
Last month I shared that I was working on meal-prepping lunches. Well, I am excited to say that I have a husband-approved meal prep lunch for you!
I dug through a few cookbooks and came across this recipe from Skinnytaste Meal Prep Cookbook. I’m a big fan of Skinnytaste recipes and the meal prep cookbook has been a great resource. I highly recommend it! I didn’t like all of the ingredients (olives and tomatoes), so I omitted those and added a few different ingredients (capers, pine nuts, and extra bell peppers). I also roughly doubled the recipe so that I would have enough for both my husband and me to eat throughout the week. I make a big bowl of the veggie salad, and have the dressing in separate bowl to add each day so the veggies don’t get soggy.
Disclaimer: I am not a professional chef (that’s my cousin, Luke! Check out his food truck, Blue Sparrow, in Pittsburgh), so this recipe is quite simple and not very fancy, but it hits the spot for my family.
Greek Chickpea Salad
(adapted from Skinnytaste Meal Prep Cookbook)
Serving: preps about 7-8 lunch bowls, depending on how large you make each salad.
Ingredients:
2, 15oz cans of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2-3 cucumbers, sliced and quartered
4-5 bell peppers, diced
1 red onion, diced
1 bag of pine nuts
1 8oz jar of capers, drained
1 8oz container of crumbled Feta cheese
6tbsp olive oil
Juice of 3 lemons, or 4tbsp of lemon juice
4tsp dried oregano
1tsp garlic powder
1tsp salt
a few shakes of pepper
Directions:
Combine chickpeas, cucumbers, bell peppers, red onion, pine nuts, and capers in a bowl and mix well so it’s tossed evenly. In a separate bowl mix in the olive oil, squeeze in the juice from the lemons, oregano, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Store dressing separately in fridge. Sprinkle some feta cheese on salad before eating (I probably sprinkle 2 tablespoons per salad).
For meal prep, scoop out the salad into individual containers, add feta to lay on top. Put dressing in a separate container to add when about to eat.
It’s really that simple, and so delicious! I’m not usually a big fan of Greek salads since I don’t like olives or tomatoes, but leaving those out and adding more bell peppers, pine nuts, and capers did the trick for me.
If you make this recipe, please let me know if you like it! I’m experimenting with some other lunch meal prep recipes, and if those are husband-approved I’ll share another one next month.
Email Encouragement for the Holidays
The holiday season is fast-approaching, which means all of our inboxes are about to be full of holiday deals, ads, and probably some spam, too. If you’d like to receive more encouragement in your email this holiday season, I compiled a list of my favorite newsletters below. Most write monthly, so they won’t overflow your email. I genuinely look forward to these newsletters when they pop into my inbox!
Risen Motherhood—Variety of Mom Writers
Coffee + Crumbs—Variety of Mom Writers
Joyful Milspouse—Military Wife & Mom
Living Truth Collective—Variety of Writers
Let’s Connect!
Thanks for reading my newsletter! Feel free to forward this email along to anyone who might enjoy it. My hope is to encourage you in your everyday faith and to share the joys and trials of life and motherhood. We’re all in this together.
—Kristin