*There will be a brief interruption in the 31 Days of Creating White Space posts for this sponsored post from BlogHer that was previously scheduled.

The boys and I have had the opportunity to watch Monsters University a lot lately. I love this movie. It is the perfect blend of humor and fun for kids and adults.

I especially love the message of this movie. That you should believe in yourself and never give up on your dreams. This is a great theme for kids to see. That Mike and Sulley were very different and they both have different strengths. Mike perseveres and keeps pushing himself until he achieves his dream. But his dream changes a little bit along the way when he realizes where he is gifted.

It reminds me a little bit of my own post-college story.

I graduated from college and moved to South Carolina for grad school. I had big plans to move to a big city, intern with a major wedding planner and get a job in a big city planning million dollar weddings.

After grad school, I accepted a job here in Columbia, and really enjoyed it. And a few months after that I met Todd, and we started dating. I knew immediately that he and I would eventually get married. And all of my goals and dreams began to change.

I knew that my home was near him. All the things I thought I always wanted began to shift as Todd and I began to plan our lives. I started planning events here at the University and then we got married. After Hudson was born over a year later, I realized that my dreams were to be his mommy. And have more children and raise them in a loving home.

My dreams and plans all changed, for the better. I never knew that I could love being a mother so much. Much like in Monsters University and the way Mike changes his plans and goals when he discovers his strengths. I hope my boys always know that no matter what their dreams are, or how often they change their goals, that they can just go after it.And do what makes them happy and what inspires them.

To be entered to win a $50 Visa gift card and a Monsters University Blu-Ray Combo Pack, answer the following question in the comments . How did you believe in yourself and achieve your dreams?

Rules:
No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
b) Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “”#SweepstakesEntry””; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post”
c) Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
The Official Rules are available here.
This sweepstakes runs from 10/3/13 – 11/3/13.
Be sure to visit the Monsters University Page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!

 

I’m linking up today with Emily Freeman to share some of the things I’ve learned in September. Only a couple of these things are particularly serious, but just a fun little list.

1. The Influence Conference is a full of encouraging, life-giving, loving women who want to make much of Jesus. I’m so thankful for the opportunity to spend a few days learning and connecting. You can follow along with me on Instagram and the #influenceconf hash tag!

2. Justin Timberlake and Jimmy Fallon sure do know their hashtags. Actually, they do a hilarious job demonstrating what those of us involved in social media sound like with all the hashtags. Just hilarious. If you haven’t seen this, watch it now.

3. I am terrified to update to the new iOS7. There is no legitimate explanation for this fear except that change scares me a little bit, and I’m just worried about losing my pictures or messing everything up. I do love the new bubbly interface!

4. September included a lot of travel, and it was all away from my kiddos. I did enjoy my time, but I learned that I don’t love being away from them. Not one bit.

5. I learned that scheduling nail appointments a few weeks in advance is a great way to make sure I actually go get my nails done. I had my nails done twice in September and probably only three total times in 2013.

6. I love baking. I mean, I guess I always knew this. But I baked cookies for my kiddos before I left town, and it was so fun. And therapeutic. Monster cookies. Seriously.

7. I learned that when I’m gearing up to move, I am more and more focused on getting rid of all the things. I need a little bit of white space. And I plan to talk about white space for 31 whole days. Let’s pray about that! 😉

8. I also learned that a fantastic organization called Sole Hope needs a nurse in Uganda to help in their efforts to heal the feet of the people and put shoes on their feet. And to have a nurse for one year and provide transportation for that nurse only costs $7,000! For the whole year! I know that everyone can come together to help make that happen for them! Please take a second to read about this organization! We participated in a shoe-cutting party tonight for Sole Hope, and wow, y’all. I am inspired and humbled and now wanting to do whatever I can to help.

Today marks my sixth blogging anniversary. That’s kind of crazy.

I never would have imagined that six years ago when I started a blog on a complete whim, with no direction, no goals, no plans, no niche, and no content to speak of, that I’d still be doing it… and loving it six years later.

Two years ago I wrote a post recapping what a new reader might have missed from the first four years. We were engaged, we got married, I planned events and taught some college classes, I had a baby, and had another baby, we sold a house and moved in with Todd’s grandmother. And now we’re here. Six years later and getting ready to move into our family home.

One of my favorite things about blogging is that I can look back and remember big things and little things. So I wanted to share with you some of my favorite posts from the last six years.

Some are super recent and some are super old. Some are deep and some just make me crack up laughing because of the memory. I’m so glad that I’ve stuck with blogging, and want to continue to write from the heart, and write the memories that are fun to read again and again.

The Nest from September 4, 2013

Our Family Mission from March 28, 2013

Marriage is Work and Work is Worship from February 27, 2013

On Being Brave from December 5, 2012

30 Things I’ve Learned in My 30 Years from November 12, 2012

Dear Me: A Letter to My Teenage Self from September 14, 2012

The Song Remembers When from August 16, 2012

My Fantasy Dinner Party from June 27, 2012

A New Day from February 6, 2012

Believe. from December 21, 2012

Birthday Weekend in Asheville from November 15, 2011

I’m a Boy Mom from September 28, 2011

A Boy and His Dog from August 24, 2011

Now That I’m a Mommy from July 28, 2011

The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly Truth from July 14, 2011

You Can Fight A Bear for a Little While from June 20, 2011

The Truth Comes Out from March 3, 2011

One Big Brain Dump About Two from January 11, 2011

Green Eggs and Ham Party: The Details from June 7, 2010

Ch-Ch-Changes from July 2, 2009

The Night Before from June 3, 2009

First conversation of the week… from March 23, 2009

Seeing things through my husband’s eyes from March 3, 2009

 *Thanks to my friend, Ashley, for making my banner!

I have one boy who craves respect.

And we’ve been on a collision course lately. Probably because I also crave respect. It’s what makes me feel heard and valued and loved.

My four-year-old has a smart little mouth. As in lots of back talk. And he is also actually very smart. He hears things. He repeats things. He understands things, and what he doesn’t understand, he tries to understand. He figures it out. He loves information.

One day last week he had been going and talking back and just pushing me. And it ended in me blowing up, and his consequence was going to bed without a bedtime book.

In some of our conversations, I was telling him what he had done wrong and why he was being punished, and he was crying and talking over me and I heard him say, “Just let me talk!”

That night after we put him to bed, I went to my room, and collapsed on the floor with my head on the bed and begged the Lord for forgiveness for yelling at Hudson. I cried and I begged God to guide me as I raise one of His children. I begged for patience and for it to be clear how I should teach and guide him. How can I effectively pour into him and mold him? We’re so much alike and we butt heads so often.

And I very clearly heard him tell me that Hudson just needs respect. I heard Hudson’s little voice saying, “Just let me talk!” Hear me, Mom. You can understand me if you’ll just listen. He wants validation. (I wonder where he gets that.)

Letting him cry. Letting him vent. Letting him tell me what hurt his feelings and what disappointed him. Why he’s upset to be leaving the party or leaving the zoo. What he loved about it. And validating those feelings and helping him cope.

(It’s true that he has to earn respect, but he responds well when he is respected and validated.)

Then I have Hayes, who is a social butterfly. Hayes wants interaction and wants to spend quality time with us. He wants to play, wants to burn his energy. He wants the warm fuzzies and the sweet moments. If we’ve learned anything through all of his speech therapy and occupational therapy sessions, it’s that he craves social interaction.

If you ask Hayes for a hug, he’ll drop what he’s doing to give you a huge hug and rest all of his weight on you. He loves feeling loved and wants to make others feel loved. And his behavior reflects whether or not he’s feeling that connection.

It seems that every year or so I have to go through a parenting reevaluation where I am forced to take a long hard look in the mirror and a long hard look at who my kids are becoming. Who are they and what do they individually need from me?

Anyone else experiencing anything similar?