Intro part 2: Mother and Jewelry Lady

Well, you can probably conclude from my last post that I am a mother.  For seven years now I have experienced the entire spectrum of emotions that comes with motherhood.  I can’t say it has been an easy seven years, but I wouldn’t change it.  Olivia saved me in more ways than she will ever know.

I am also a Premier Designs Jewelry Lady.  Premier is a direct sales company that serves women through offering affordably priced high fashion jewelry via home shows.  Through Premier, I have met so many wonderful women, and learned so much about myself.  I still I have a lot to learn about marketing. . .

Premier just released their 2008 Holiday Collection and it is absolutely fabulous!!  Here is the cover:

Wisdom and Examples

At church this morning, our pastor, Dave, preached on raising teenagers.  Although, Livvie is hardly a teenager at 7 years of age, he made two points that I have been thinking about since.  I thought I would share.

1.  Parents set the examples that their children will follow in life.  Our children learn how to live from watching us.  This is common sense, but it has me thinking hard about the example that I set for Olivia on a daily basis.  She’s a good kid, so I’ve done something right (well. . .probably, that’s attributable to my parents doing something right), but mostly the example that I have set for her makes me sad.  I’ve taught her to yell when she’s mad, cry when she’s overwhelmed, leave piles of crap lying everywhere, and to never allow herself enough time to get anywhere on time.  Then, I have the nerve to get mad at her for being a total drama queen, leaving her room a mess, and being slow as a slug when it comes to getting dressed in the morning.  That being said, she is honest, soft-hearted, genuinely loves people, and has very good manners MOST of the time.  What a giant dose of perspective that was!!!  If I want her to have certain attributes, I have to teach her those through being a living example of them.  So simple, but ooohhh so difficult!

2.  Secondly, Dave spoke about the wisdom that teenagers lack because of their lack of life experience.  Basically, we have to give our kids the tools in their toolboxes to know right from wrong, and hope that they are wise enough to use those tools when the situations arise.  We shouldn’t be afraid to talk to our kids about anything!  They should know the havock that drugs can bring to their lives, and they should know where babies come from, and the difficulties they will bring to their lives if they become mothers and fathers too early.  No subject should be taboo.  Wouldn’t we rather our children find out about these things from us, then from other children?    I’ve often heard it said, “You’re not their friend, you’re their parent!”  Well, to a degree, I disagree.  First and foremost, I am Olivia’s mother, but I want to be enough of a friend to her that she is never afraid to talk to me about anything, nothing is off limits, and I am the person she wants to talk to when she experiences peer pressure, or has a crush on a boy (30 years from now, of course.)

That’s a lot to think about for one day, but this one day may significantly change my approach to parenting.  Olivia will learn how to live based on how she sees me live.  That can be totally horrifying, or I can choose “to be the woman that I want my daughter to be”  (that’s a line from Jewel’s new song, “Stronger Woman”, and a line I wish I had written.)

Intro part 1

In my first few posts, I plan to write about a different piece of the puzzle that is me.  I think the most important part of me that I want people to know is that I am a Christian, NOT religious, but I got Jesus!  I was saved when I was 9 years old, and as I child, in my innocence, I really got was it was all about.  That’s thanks to my parents who are wonderful examples of Christianity.  But as I grew up, I fell into traditionalism.  It’s ironic how innocent children understand more about Christianity than seasoned adults.  My life took a wrong turn when I was about 19 as I decided to follow MY plan for my life instead of God’s plan.  Although some blessings came out of that decision, it was still a bad decision.  God uses bad decisions to show us his mercy.  I went back to my traditional church a couple of years later, but as I began to turn back to God, my heart was unsettled about my walk with Him.  I felt that my traditional church and traditional Christian acquaintances (because “friends” would be a strong word) didn’t really share my vision for what I thought Christianity should be.  I had become a “church person”, which is unfortunately a derogatory term in today’s culture, which is typically equated with another term, “hypocrite.”  After about five years and much prayer I began searching for another church home.   I didn’t have to search far.  A wonderful friend of mine by the name of Jason Lack had been telling me about his church for quite a while.  He had told me about this church, Crosspoint Community Church, that meets in a movie theater, has a rock band needing a keyboardist, and has a wonderful children’s program.  Needless to say, I was interested.  I have never been so welcomed by a group of people in all of my life.  I knew after the first visit that Crosspoint shares my vision of what Christianity is about.  It’s about loving like Jesus did, and reaching lost souls for God.  Bottom line.  No liturgical colors, offering plates, altar flowers, or dress codes.  Just a simple church with a simple message.  Jesus loves you, and we love you, and no matter your past, you can be forgiven.  And, I LOVE my church.  And, more importantly, my daughter Olivia LOVES our church.  She absolutely melted my heart this morning as we drove to the theater and she talked about how much she loves going to church now.  If you are reading this and in search of a church home where you can just be yourself, where you can find real people dealing with real issues just as you are, and you can find spiritual guidance that is relevant in today’s world, please consider visiting Crosspoint, either in person or on the web.  We will welcome you with open arms.

Blog World Debute

Welcome All!  I have been tossing around the idea of joining the blog world for a while.  It seems like quite the trendy thing to do these days.  I have been blogging for a couple of years now on my myspace page, www.myspace.com/meganmichelle, and I love to write, so here I am.  I can’t imagine that this will be anything that anyone finds enjoyable, but it is a therapuetic outlet for me.  Therapy. . .something I need in my busy life as a mom, accountant, jewelry lady, daughter, girlfriend, praise band keyboardist, and friend.  I find myself in a crossroads in my career.  I have been with my current employer for almost 4 1/2 years now, and although I love my job, it leaves me longing for something more challenging.  I feel like I do a lot of busy work that doesn’t quite utilize my skill level.  My supervisor and I are currently devising a development plan for me that will work on utilizing my skills in a way that is more fulfilling.  He and I had a rough patch earlier this year, but are learning to communicate with each other much better.  This year has been full of life lessons for me so far, most them related to my professional life. . . and some personal.  For instance, there ARE a few good men left in this world, and God puts one in your life if you ask and then are patient.  He waits for His time, and His time finally came for me this year.  I have been very blessed.  I know that life holds many more wonderful things and I plan to journal them here, yet I will most likely be conservative on the details (another life lesson learned.)